


CC Mini-Series

by Liza1031



Category: Glee RPF
Genre: Actors, Birth, Breastfeeding, Chris' a good mommy, Criss Child, Dad!Darren Criss, Darren's a good daddy, Dating, Domestic Darren and Chris, Engagement, Eventual Husbands, Eventual marriage, Falling In Love, Glee - Freeform, Kid Fic, Love, Loving Comfort, M/M, Male Lactation, Mom!Chris Colfer, Mpreg, Pregnant Chris Colfer, Romance, Wedding, crisscolfer, homebirth, labor
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-16
Updated: 2020-12-16
Packaged: 2021-03-11 03:07:52
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 24,718
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28118205
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Liza1031/pseuds/Liza1031
Summary: Four part series about Chris Colfer and Darren Criss.
Relationships: Chris Colfer/Darren Criss
Kudos: 3





	1. Slowly Then All At Once

“And cut!” The director yells. “Great job guys! Let’s go to lunch then pick up from scene seven!”

The cast and crew all abandoned whatever they were doing and left set.

Chris and Darren had just filmed their first kiss for the show and it was surely a moment neither of them would ever forget.

The two young actors followed behind everyone, leaving set together.

“You’re a pretty good kisser.” Chris tells his on-screen romance with a subtle smile.

“Thanks.” Darren blushes, smiling as well. “You’re not so bad yourself.”

“Why thank you.” Chris laughs, wiggling his perfectly shaped eyebrows. “Well, I’ll see you in an hour.”

“See ya.”

Chris waves as they go their separate ways to their trailers. Both of them could tell something was up with the other but neither of them made it an effort to find out.

The rest of the day, Chris would catch Darren staring at him a lot more since they filmed that scene and it was kinda cute because he did have a little crush on his cast mate but wouldn’t dare tell anyone. They filmed the rest of the episode and by the end of the day everyone was exhausted and ready for some sleep.

Chris was in his trailer, now in his normal clothes, packing some things into his bag before he went back to his hotel. He made sure he had his phone, wallet, car keys, laptop, all chargers, and iPod. As soon as he was about to head out, he heard a knock at his door.

“Hang on a sec.” He shouts and quickly looks over himself in the mirror before going to answer.

When he pushed the door open, he was rather shocked and relieved to see that it was Darren.

“Can I come up real quick?” He asks.

“Sure. Come on in.” Chris says, letting his cast mate through. “So what’s up?”

“Nothing just came to see what you were doing.” Darren says.

“Oh?” Chris quirks an eyebrow. “I was just getting ready to leave.”

Darren slowly nods and leans against the counter, hands stuffed into his jean pockets.

“Is there anything you-”

“Would you like to go out for lunch sometime or even coffee maybe? It doesn’t matter, either one is fine with me I just figured I’d ask.” Darren blurts and Chris turns a light shade of pink. “Sorry that was kinda sudden and rude and I just ramble on when I’m nervous but do you like doing those things? I mean I do so that’s why I thought I’d ask.”

“Are you trying to ask me out on Mister Darren Criss?” Chris asks.

Darren smiles and rubs the back of his neck slowly, “Yes.” He answers.

Chris laughs and starts to nod his head, “I would love to go out with you.” He says and Darren’s relieved. “I’m free this weekend if you want to do something then?”

“Sure! Let’s do lunch Saturday afternoon?”

“Perfect. It’s a date.” Chris says as the two walk out of his trailer.

“It’s a date.” Darren repeats with a huge smile on his face.

They both walk to their cars together and say bye before getting in. Darren drove to his apartment while Chris drove to the hotel he’s been staying at since he has yet to get an apartment like everyone else, oh well.

**\---**

Saturday came faster than expected and before they knew it, it was time for their first unofficial date. Chris wasn’t sure exactly what to call it since they were just going to lunch together but either way he was going to be with Darren and nothing else mattered.

Darren shows up at Chris’ hotel suite with his usual warm smile painted on his face as he knocks on Chris’ door.

Chris just finished buttoning up his shirt and went to go answer his door. Darren stood there looking casual yet so hot.

“Wow. You look great.” Darren says as Chris welcomes him in.

“Oh please.” Chris waves his hand at him. “It’s just a button down with skinny jeans. Nothing fancy.”

“But still. You always look great.” Darren adds, causing Chris’ smile to grow ten times in size. “I’ve been looking forward to this all week.”

“Me too.” Chris says grabbing his phone and wallet. “Shall we get going?”

“We shall.”

The two exchange smiles as they leave his hotel suite and take the elevator down to the lobby, walking outside.

They go on their “date” and get lunch at a cafe in downtown LA. It was nice being outside with each other just enjoying the beautiful weather.

They were in the middle of their meals, talking about their lives, what it was like growing up, and of course this godsend of a show that brought them together.  
“Did you know I originally auditioned for Finn?” Darren says and takes a bite of his grilled chicken.

“Oh my god! Really?!” Chris squeals.

“Yep. I had my heart set on it but when they casted him I was kinda bummed figuring they wouldn’t need me for anything. Then I got the call to read for Blaine and well, the rest is history.”

“Well I’m so glad you didn’t get cast as Finn. That would’ve just been awkward.”

“Yeah. You’re telling me. Besides, if I wasn’t casted as Blaine I wouldn’t be sitting here with a beautiful man like yourself on our first date.” He says causing Chris to blush a deep red.

“Well thank the heavens for that.” Chris laughs, finishing up his salad. “It’s so beautiful out today. I love when the sun’s out and there aren’t any clouds in the sky. The perfect kind of day in my eyes.”

“It is perfect, just like you.”

“Oh hush. I am far from perfect, Darren.”

“Stop, you’re amazing.” Darren argues. “You’re perfect in my eyes.”

Chris takes a sip from his water trying to hide his bashfulness from the person he was starting to fall in love with. God, why did he have to be so damn hot?

By the end of it, they decide to go walk around the city for a while but don’t hold hands. They enjoy the time they had with each other.

The sun is starting to set by the time they make it back to Chris’ hotel. Darren goes with him up to his suite and never wanted the night to end.

“Thank you for today. I had a great time and I really hope we can do it again.”

“Of course. I had a good time too.” Darren says standing by the door. “I guess I should probably get going.”

“Okay. Drive home safely.”

“I will. I’ll see you Monday.”

“See you Monday.” Chris says.

Just then, Darren gives a quick peck to his cheek. Huge butterflies filled his stomach as he stared at Darren, the same way his character did during that scene, though it wasn’t as intimate.

“Bye Chris.” He says softly.

“Bye.” Chris responds and goes into his room.

He closes the door behind him and squeals like a little girl, jumping up and down. What a way to end his night.

So after their little first date, they continue filming for the second season of the show and the two of them start to spend lots of time together either on set or in each others’ trailers. They spend more time together than usual that some of the cast has started to notice and question them which they kindly deny since neither of them know if they’d make it public that they’re an item.

**-Three Months Later-**

Chris was singing to himself as he cleaned up around his suite. He wasn’t a slob and usually kept the place nice and tidy, but recently he’s been a little preoccupied with a certain someone.

Just as Chris crossed across the sitting room, a knock came about at the door. Confused, Chris makes his way to the front area of his suite and looks through the peephole. Smiling to himself Chris unlocks the door and opens it coming face to face with Darren.

“Hi! Come on in! I wasn’t expecting you today. Sorry about the mess.”

“Don’t worry about it and I know, I’m sorry for coming unannounced but there’s something I really need to tell you and I’m afraid it couldn’t wait.” Darren hastily says.

Chris’ heart plummets to the ground as he starts to think the worse. He wasn’t physically or mentally prepared to go through a breakup right now.

Darren notices how pale Chris got and could practically see his heart racing behind his chest.

“Oh, babe, it’s nothing bad I promise.” He says and takes Chris’ baby soft hands into his. “At least I hope it’s good. Um, so anyways, I really like you. Like a lot.”

“Okay.” Chris replies curiously, unsure of what was about to happen.

“I want to take you on a real date to a fancy restaurant or something. Just somewhere, me and you having a nice romantic evening together. Would you be up for that?”

“Of course.” Chris exhales as Darren pulls him into a hug.

Chris is shocked but happy that the man he has feelings for likes him too.

“Will next weekend work?” Darren asks.

“Yes.” Chris answers.

“Great! Well I have a meeting to get to so I can’t stay unfortunately but I’m looking forward to seeing you all dolled up for me this weekend.”

“You are something else, you know that?” Chris grins.

“I know, but you love it.” Darren says cheekily, giving a quick peck to Chris’ cheek. “I’ll see you later or tomorrow. Either way, I can’t wait.”

“Get out of here.” Chris chuckles, opening the door for Darren.

They share goodbyes then Darren was on his way while Chris went back to picking up around the place.

That night Chris goes to bed excited and anxious for what he’s getting himself into but he knows Darren would never do anything to hurt him.

All week at the lot they kept giving each other dopey, love-filled eyes, dreamy smiles and tried to be discreet about their slow start to their relationship.

When Saturday arrived, Chris couldn’t be more nervous or excited for his first official date with Darren. Chris spent most of his day picking out the perfect outfit, he wanted to make sure Darren knew what he was getting while still being classy and clean.

He was having trouble choosing between black or navy blue. Tie or no tie. Hairspray or mousse. Eventually throwing an outfit together, Chris looked at himself in the mirror, impressed at himself.

At exactly 7:30, Darren showed up and knocked at his door.

Chris took a deep breath before going to answer. He opens the door for his date and gasps at the sight of his crush looking fresh to death and all proper.

“Wow. You look incredible.”

“Thank you” Darren smiles, holding the bouquet of roses out for his date. “These are for you.”

“They’re beautiful. Thank you.” Chris takes the roses and sniffs their delicate scent, then lets Darren inside.

“You look beautiful.” Darren says, eyeing Chris up and down, taking in his hot date. “I love this shirt on you.” He adds, running his hands down Chris’ chest. “Looks amazing on you.”

“Thanks. Let me put these in the fridge then we can head out.”

Darren nods, watching Chris run into the kitchen. He comes back with his jacket, phone, and wallet, then takes Darren’s hand as they leave his room.

When they get down to the lobby, Darren escorted Chris to his car and then the two were off to embark on their romantic evening together.

**\---**

“No way! So you actually played Harry Potter in a musical in college?”

“Yep! My hair was longer and just a mop of curls and then fetus me in my glory.”

Chris laughs, taking another sip of his wine, finishing it. “I so have to see pictures of you like that. Oh my god that’s priceless.”

“Yeah. I can’t believe you didn’t know. Just about everyone in the cast did.”

“I don’t study my cast mates. I just go about my day and could honestly care less. But I love hearing about you.”

“Likewise.” Darren says, finishing his wine as well. He sets his glass down and just stares at Chris with a dreamy look in his eyes.

Chris stayed silent, staring at his date across the table, feeling as though they were communicating through telepathy. He couldn’t get over Darren’s honey golden eyes, triangular eyebrows, beautifully curly hair, everything about him was perfect and Chris soon realized he was falling deeper and deeper in love with him.

As they stare at each other, wondering who was going to speak first, their waitress comes by with their dessert. She sets the plate in front of the two, getting a double thank you in response, leaving them alone again.

Chris looks at the small chocolate lava cake in the center of the dish and gasps seeing what was written on the plate in chocolate sauce.”

“Will you be my boyfriend?” He reads aloud, smiling up at Darren. “Of course I’ll be your boyfriend.” Chris says as Darren lets out the breath he was holding.

They both reach for the spoon and their hands brush against each other, causing them to giggle like kids, pulling away.

“You can have the first bite.” Darren says.

Chris took the spoon and grabbed a piece of the chocolate cake, bringing it to his mouth.

“Mmm.” He hums, admiring the sweetness from the cake and warmth from the lava part inside.

“Is it good?” Darren asks.

“Very.” Chris mumbles and wipes the corner of his mouth with a napkin, pushing the plate to the other side. “Have a bite. It’s very sweet.”

“Ooh, sounds good.”

As they share their dessert, they talk some more then were on their way back to Chris’ hotel. Now, they stood outside Chris’ suite, facing each other.

“Thank you for taking me out tonight. I had a great time.” Chris says with a small smile on his face.

“I did too.”

Darren looks at Chris’ lips and slowly goes in for a kiss. Chris accepts, letting himself go in Darren’s arms. Their lips move together in unison, tongues dancing with each other as this searing kiss was what both had looked forward to.

When Darren pulls away, Chris’ cheeks are tinged with a pink blush. He then goes in this time, lips colliding together, enjoying every second of this bliss. Chris wraps his arms around Darren’s neck as the two fight for dominance with their heated kiss.

“You kisses are better in real life than on camera.” Chris says breathlessly, causing them both to laugh.

Darren keeps kissing Chris as they make their way into the hotel suite and struggle to get each other’s clothes off. Everything was happening so fast. A little too fast for Chris.

They made it to the bed and Chris was underneath Darren, who was trying to unzip his pants ready to whip it when Chris stopped him.

“Wait! Wait!” He pants. “I-I want to wait. I w-want the moment to be special when it happens.”

Darren doesn't say anything and just looks up Chris, zipping his pants back up. He moved and was lying beside him, with a gentle smile on his face.

“I think that’s very sweet and I won’t pressure you into doing it until you’re ready.”

“Thank you.” Chris says softly and kisses his boyfriend.

**-Next Morning-**

When Chris wakes up, he happily hums and lets his eyes adjust to the brightly lit room. He looks over at Darren who was still asleep. Chris smiles and cuddles closer to his boyfriend’s bare chest. They didn’t do the dirty but were romantic just the same.

He stays in his boyfriend’s arms for several minutes then decides to get up and order some breakfast.

Leaving Darren in the bed, Chris pulls on his thin robe and walks out of the bedroom. He makes his way to the table and writes down everything he plans on ordering.

He calls down to the front desk and gives them his order for the kitchen then waits for the food to arrive.

By the time their breakfast is delivered, Darren wakes up and goes out to find Chris. He sees his boyfriend pushing the cart into the bedroom, nearly running him over.

“Oops! I’m sorry hun.”

“It’s okay.” Darren laugh and gathers his boyfriend in his arms.

“Mmm, good morning my love.”

“Good morning.” Chris smiles, kissing his boyfriend. “I ordered some breakfast for us so I hope you’re hungry.”

“It looks great. Were you gonna serve me in bed?”

“I sure was so get that cute little butt of yours back in there.”

“Not only if you join me.” Darren teases and squeezes Chris’ firm ass cheek. “Please?”

“I’ll be there.” Chris whispers and pecks his lips once more then turns to bring the cart further into the room.

The couple get themselves situated in bed with their breakfast in their laps.

While they are eating, Darren couldn’t help but notice the way Chris’ robe hung off his shoulder, how his hair had been messed up from his pillow, and how the ghost of sleep stayed on his face. He looked so sexy sitting there eating his fruit, reading through a magazine.

As Darren finished up his food, he set his plate onto the small table beside the bed then turned to lay on his side facing Chris.

“Did you have fun last night on our date?” He asks, running his finger along Chris’ exposed shoulder.

“I did. You really outdid yourself with the roses, the dinner, the dessert. Everything about it was perfect.”

“I’m glad you enjoyed yourself, baby.” He puckers his lips for Chris.

Chris took the hint and gave his boyfriend a chaste kiss. When they pull apart, Chris sighs and grabs Darren’s hand, intertwining their fingers together. “I don’t want to be ashamed of our relationship. I really like you Darren and I love being able to be your boyfriend but I want this to be right.” He explains.

“I want this to be right too and I just want you to be happy.” Darren assures. “Don’t worry. I’m never gonna let you go through alone. We’re in this together.” He adds, kissing Chris once more.

**\---**

Chris and Darren have been dating for about two months now and neither of them could be happier.

Their friends and families were all so happy and supportive of them and just want what’s best for the two.

Unfortunately, their relationship was made public by the press and paparazzi but neither of them cared because they were so in love that nothing could ever spoil this.

They were currently on their way back from another lunch date, this time to Nobu. Darren pulled up to his apartment building and parked in the garage underneath.

They took the elevator up to the lobby then transferred over to the main elevators, bringing them up to the twenty second floor.

Going inside, it wasn’t anything Chris hasn’t seen before. He’s spent countless nights here with his boyfriend and was rather pleased that the kid who plays a preppy school boy is such a nerd, but he’s a cute nerd.

“What do you want to do tonight?” Darren asks.

“I have several ideas.” Chris smirks and pushes down onto the couch.

“Oh a little intimate this afternoon aren’t we?”

“Mhmmmmf.” Chris smacks their lips together, hands trying to get behind Darren. He attempts to grab a hold of his boyfriend but instead gets under the pillow and touches something hard. “Wait. What was that?” Chris pulls out a small box that was hidden under his boyfriend.

“What’s this?” He asks.

Darren just smiles at him, waiting for him to open it.

“Just a little something for our two month anniversary.”

“Babe that was last week. What more could you have gotten me?”

“Just open it please. I think you’re gonna love it.” Darren insists.

Chris sighs as he pulls the lid off the box. A silver key falls out and lands on Darren’s chest.

“A key? Aww does this mean I’m the key to your heart?” Chris asks.

“No.” Darren chuckles, pulling Chris closer to him. “It’s an offering. I want you to move in with me.”

“Babe.” Chris frowns, holding the key in his hand. “Are you serious?”

“Yes I’m serious. I want you to live with me and I want us to be together under the same roof. A next step in our relationship. What do you say? Please say yes.”

“I’d be honored to move in with you, baby.” Chris smiles, smacking his lips against Darren’s. What could be better than moving in with the man he loves? Literally nothing, at this point. Well other than marriage but that’s not in the question right now.

From that day forward, Chris and Darren packed up everything he had at his parent’s house. Both of them were so excited to be living together and their families were extremely happy that they were taking this next step in their relationship, providing all the support and help they could.

It took about a week and a half for Chris to get all his things fully moved into Darren’s place, but once everything was either folded in the drawers, hung in the closet, or sitting in the cup in the bathroom, he was finally moved in.

Their first night, they ordered a pizza and bought some cheap champagne to celebrate this next step in their relationship.

They sat on the balcony that overlooked the beautiful city of dreams while they ate their dinner together.

“This is so amazing.” Chris happily sighs. “I love it here. It’s so private and intimate. It’s great.”

“Well I am delighted that you’re here with me.” Darren says and leans over, kissing behind Chris’ ear. “I love you.” He whispers.

Chris looks over at him, blushing at those words. Even though they had been in a relationship for two months, the ‘I love yous’ didn’t come all the time. But tonight, he knew it meant much more than what it really did.

“I love you.” He breathes, kissing his boyfriend.

They share a long, heated, passionate kiss then Darren moves for them to get up. He takes Chris’ hand and blows out the candle that was lit, leading him into their bedroom.


	2. Forever Yours

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Chris and Darren get engaged.

**Part 2 CC mini-series**

**-Four Years Later-**

Glee has wrapped and Chris and Darren are in a very serious relationship. They’ve gotten used to all the hate or negativity they’d received over the years about them dating but neither of them cared because they still had each other and that’s all that matters. This show has made them very successful, plus with Chris’ books and movie deals he’s been getting, it’s been a rollercoaster of a time together but they’ve gotten through it and are ready for the next step in their relationship.

While home in their apartment, Chris was in his office working on yet another book for his series. He sat in his black swivel chair, typing away at his computer, when he heard his boyfriend walk through the front door.

“Chris?”

“I’m in here babe!” He shouts, eyes never leaving his computer.

“Hey.” Darren says and pushes the door open to Chris’ office. “Still writing?”

“Yep! I’m almost done with this chapter then I’ll have two more to go.”

“Ooh very nice.” Darren hums and makes himself some room on top of Chris’ lap, causing him to stop typing.

“And just what do you think you’re doing, mister?” He asks.

“You’ll see.” Darren responds. He then inches closer to Chris and crashes his lips against his boyfriend’s, giving him a very fiery kiss.

As their lips pull apart, Chris stares up at his boyfriend with a smile growing on his face.

“What was that for?” He asks, clearly amused from Darren’s display of affection.

“What, I can’t kiss my boyfriend?” Darren asks as if he’s being accused of a crime. “It’s nothing babe, just wanted to kiss you.”

Chris gave Darren a look he’s mastered over the years, a look that makes Darren know he can’t hide whatever it is he was trying to cover up.

“Okay, okay.” Darren heaves a sigh before speaking. “I gave you that kiss to make up for the time I’m gonna miss because I’ve been casted in a broadway show.” He smirks.

“OH MY GOD! YOU GOT IT!” Chris screams, nearly throwing Darren off his lap. He pulls his boyfriend into a tight hug, still cheering and gushing over the news.

“I got it, babe! I got it because you never stopped believing in me and I did it! I’m the new Hedwig!”

“Aww babe.” Chris breaks their embrace and sets his hands on Darren’s face, placing a rather heated kiss on his perfect Filipino lips. “God, I am so proud of you.” He pants. “Are you excited? When do rehearsals start?”

“I don't quite know yet but not for a while. They’re still waiting for the person’s end date contract. But yeah I’m excited. I just hate that I have to leave you for almost five months.”

“I know baby, but this is so great for you and I’m going to support you every step of the way.”

“I love you.” Darren breathes, kissing Chris again.

“I love you too.” Chris says when they pull apart. “We should celebrate or something. Let’s go out tonight. We can dress up and go out for a night on the town. What do you say?”

“I’d say it’s a date.” Darren winks as Chris smiles yet again.

“Perfect. Let me finish this then we can have the rest of the day to pick where we want to go and what to wear.”

“Alright. I’ll be in our room.”

“Okay.”

Chris went back to writing and finished the chapter he was working on then saved it and left his office. He joined his boyfriend in their bedroom and sat with him on their bed, pulling out his phone to see possible places they can go to tonight.

They decided to go to Santa Monica and try a place called, The Penthouse. Darren made them a reservation for 8:15, which gave them five hours to do whatever they wanted. When they usually had free time, they liked to just stay home and watch movies, so that’s exactly what they did. It wasn’t anything extravagant, just getting to spend time together as a couple.

By the time the sun set, the couple was ready to go. Chris and Darren were dressed to the nines, obviously, but of course paparazzi was up their asses. They just ignored it and had a fun time together doing fun cute couple stuff. They were stopped by some fans asking for pictures so they did that then returned to their apartment late and Darren was a little tipsy and turned on by Chris.

“C’mon baby let’s have some fun tonight.” Darren whines and pulls Chris by his shirt. “Please.”

“No, no, not tonight.”

“C’mon Chris please! You know you want me!” Darren then falls back onto the bed and takes Chris with him, kissing all over his face. “I love you so much.”

“I love you too, honey but I ca-” Chris stops when he notices something sticking out of the draw in the side table.

“No! Chris! Wait!” Darren tries to stop him but Chris was already interested in what it was. He looks at Darren and sits back on his knees, pulling out the papers. Flipping it over to get the front, he sees that it was a catalog for homes in the Hollywood Hills.

“Why do you have these?” He asks Darren.

Darren then sighs, taking the papers from Chris. “I wanted to surprise you next week, but I guess that went out the window.” He says and sits up against the headboard. “I think it’s time we buy a house together because I want us to share this life together. Just me and you. Forever.”

“Dare,” Chris’ voice goes up an octave as his boyfriend just continues to make his heart swell. “That is so cute. I would love to buy a house with you.”

“Thank god you’re on the same page as me. I was afraid you’d think it was too soon or something, that’s why I didn’t know when to bring it up.”

“I don’t think it’s too soon at all. In fact, I think we’re moving at just the right pace.” Chris says and kisses his boyfriend. “How about we get some sleep and discuss more of this tomorrow?”

“Okay.” Darren smiles. “G’night babe.”

“Night Darren.” Chris says softly and watches him close his eyes, slowly falling asleep.

Chris sits on the edge of the bed and looks through the pages of the catalog, sighing, as he knows that his life was really changing. Going from living in a hotel suite while filming the show to now buying a house with his boyfriend of four years. It’s amazing.

**\---**

Over the next few months, Chris and Darren go house hunting together and settle for a nice home in the Hollywood Hills. It was perfect for them and if they ever wanted to have a family someday.

They move in and about two months after they move in, they are both in bed together Darren was staring at Chris while Chris had something rather tempting on his mind.

“Are you okay babe? You seem to be in very deep thought.”

Chris then turns to face his boyfriend, “Have you ever thought about having kids someday?”

“What?”

“Kids. You know like a baby. A tiny person.” He tries to joke but fails. “I’m sorry. I’ve just been hiding my feelings towards the subject and didn’t know how or if I should approach you with this. I’m not sure how comfortable you are to talk about it.” He sniffles as tears form in his eyes.

“Sweetheart,” Darren takes Chris’ hand in his hand, brushing his fingers along his knuckles. “I told you before, I will never pressure you into doing anything that makes you uncomfortable, okay?” He says, wiping Chris’ tears with the pads of his thumbs.

Chris nods, “Okay. But what do you want for us and our lives? Do you want kids to be involved or not?”

“I think it’ll be great to have a family someday with you. Whether we adopt or get a surrogate either way we can-“

“I’m not like other boys though, babe. That’s the problem.”

‘What?” Darren asks, voice laden with confusion. He runs his hand down the length of Chris’ back trying to comfort him but it doesn’t work. Chris moves out of the bed and stands near the doors to their balcony as a breeze blows in.

“I’m different and if I tell you this then I’d understand if you didn’t want to be with me anymore because of this.”

“Because of what?” Darren asks, sitting up in bed. “Honey, can you please tell me what’s wrong?”

Chris takes a deep breath before speaking, but keeps his back to Darren. “I have a special gene that allows me to carry children. I found out when I started puberty and it was a shock to the doctors because they thought I was a hermaphrodite but I knew I wasn’t, I was just special.” He says softly.

Darren immediately gets up and wraps his arms around his boyfriend in a soothing manner.

“There’s nothing to be ashamed of because of this. I do think you’re special to have kids because I know our kids are going to be made from pure love and not at a fertility clinic.”

“Are you serious?” Chris hiccups, signaling he was crying.

“I am dead serious, babe. I would never lie to you.” Darren turns Chris around and kisses his tears away. “I love the fact that you can have my babies and I cannot wait for when the time comes for us to start trying because I know it’ll be a fun time.”

Chris flashes a smile, relieved.

“C’mon, let’s go back to bed.” Darren says and holds Chris in his arms as they walk back to their bed. “Just do you know, I could never be mad at you or leave you just because you’re different. It’s what makes you special and I love that about you.” He adds giving Chris a small kiss. “I love you.”

“I love you too.” Chris breathes.

They get back under the covers and Chris curls into Darren’s side, laying his head over his chest, listening to his heart beating as it puts him to sleep.

**-Few Weeks Later-**

Chris sadly sighs standing in front of Darren as the two were in the middle of saying goodbye to each other. It was rather hard having to say bye to his boyfriend and let him travel across the country without him.

“Don’t cry sweetheart. I’ll be back before you know it.”

“I know.” Chris whimpers. “I’m gonna miss you so much though.”

“I’m gonna miss you too. But hey, you’ll be coming out for my opening night and we’ll get to spend the week together and celebrate our four year anniversary.” Darren says. He had something very special planned for their anniversary and knows Chris is gonna love it.

“How could I forget?” Chris says and wipes his tears.

Darren’s flight got called and he hadn’t even made it through security yet.

“I really need to go babe.” Darren says, putting his bag over his shoulder. He started to tear up seeing Chris try to hold in his own emotions but it was just too hard. “Don’t cry baby.” He sniffles. “I promise we’ll call and Skype as much as I can.”

“Okay. I love you.” Chris chokes back a sob and hugs his boyfriend.

“I love you too.”

They give each other a long kiss then Darren pulls away so he can catch his flight. Chris watches Darren disappear in the crowd of people and sighs again. He was all alone.

Afterwards, Chris goes back home and gets a text from Darren.

 **Darren** ❤️ ❤️ ❤️  
 **I miss you already. Love you ❤️ ❤️ ❤️**

Chris smiles and replies to his text.

_I miss you too!! 😘 😘 😘 😘_

He decides to run himself a warm bath and doesn’t know what to do with himself while Darren is across the country, but whatever it is he’ll figure it out.

**\---**

It’s been a long two months but Chris was finally on his way to New York. Darren has been in rehearsals for literally what felt like forever but now the time has finally come for Chris to see his boyfriend and celebrate their anniversary. This was going to be great.

His plane had just landed and he was so anxious to get out and see his boyfriend, who was supposed to be meeting him there.

When Chris got his carry-on from the overhead compartment, he shimmed down the aisle getting to the exit and smiled at one of the flight attendants as he stepped onto the attached platform, walking down the long hall that brought him to the terminal.

Getting into the airport, he rushes through the crowd of people and searches for Darren. A small part of him felt that he would forget and not be there to pick up Chris, but he knew Darren would never do that to him.

Continuing to walk through the people, Chris was looking and looking and then he saw him.

Darren stood there with a huge smile on his face and probably the largest bouquet of roses in hand. Chris relaxes as he sees his boyfriend standing before him and flashes a smile running over to him.

“Hi baby.” Darren greets him with a very long awaited kiss. “These are for you.”

“They’re so beautiful. Thank you.” Chris says and takes the roses. He goes in for another kiss and all the sudden there were flashes going off all around them either from fans or paparazzi.

“Chris! Over here!”

“Darren!”

“Chris!”

“Darren! Darren! Look!”

It was a never ending cycle with the paps. They could never catch a break.

“Let's get out of here.” Chris says and grabs onto Darren’s hand tightly and goes to get his suitcase from baggage then they quickly make their way to the blacked out car that was waiting for them.

“God, people never give it a break do they?” Chris asks, taking off his jacket since he was rather warm now that his adrenaline was pumping.

“That’s how they make their living babe.” Darren says and grabs hold of Chris’ hand again. “I’m so excited you’re here.” He squeals.

“I am too. It’s been so lonely at home without you there.”

Darren frowns and curls into his boyfriend’s side as they stay on top of each other during the ride to Darren’s penthouse apartment.

Once they arrived, Darren took Chris’ bags and walked him inside the front lobby. They take the elevators up to one of the top floors and Darren opens his front door for Chris, allowing him to go in first.

Chris steps into this beautiful penthouse and takes in the beauty it held. He walks around and notices all the pictures Darren had of them or just of him hanging around the place. There must’ve been like five or six in every room.

“I put them around to motivate me to get through the days.” Darren says, stuffing his hands into his back pockets. “I know it’s kind of a lot but you’re what gets me through the day.”

Chris smiles, turning around, and walks back to his boyfriend, taking him into his arms. “I think it’s adorable and I’m glad I’m your motivation.” He says pressing their lips together in a quick kiss. “I can’t wait for tonight.”

“Me either.” Darren smiles as they start to slowly sway back and forth. “Are you hungry? I was thinking maybe we can get some lunch then come back here before tonight?”

“That sounds good. Just lead the way, my love.” Chris says.

“Okay.” Darren laughs.

He grabs his keys while Chris makes sure he has everything before following his boyfriend out of his apartment.

They decide to go out for lunch in SoHo then take a quick nap afterwards before Darren has to head to the theater.

By the time they arrived at the Belasco Theater, there was already a huge crowd of people waiting outside for the show. More than half of these people probably had no care in the world but were just there to see Darren.

He and Chris sent each other a look of reassurance before they exited the car and made their way passed the screaming fans while holding each other's hands in a death grip.

They say hi to some of the cast that was in the show while making their way to Darren’s dressing room. He opens the door and they go inside.

“Oh my god. Who are these all from?” Chris asks, leaning down to inhale one of the bouquets of flowers Darren has been sent.

“My parents, brother and sister-in law, Lea, Jenna, Ryan and David, and of course you.” He says, pointing to the largest one of the bunch.

“Well I wanted you to know how proud I am of you.” Chris says, snaking his arm around Darren’s waist.

“They also sent some gift baskets but I didn’t get one from you.”

“You’ll get my extra special gift later.” Chris teases, winking at his boyfriend. “I can’t wait to see you all dressed up in your makeup and costume. You’re gonna look so sexy.”

“Ooh, well then you’re in for a treat.” Darren moans and kisses Chris.

“I can’t wait.”

Darren’s makeup artist comes in to get started, so Chris sat on the couch watching his boyfriend transform into the beautiful goddess known as Hedwig. He changed into his costume then had the blonde wig put on and he was set.

Darren turned to his boyfriend and raised an eyebrow, “What do you think?”

“I’m actually kind of turned on by this.” Chris admits. “Can you keep it on after the show?”

Darren laughs, pulling Chris into his arms. “I guess you’ll have to see.” He mocks and lays a kiss on his lips. He ends up getting some glitter on Chris’ face and tries to wipe it off but Chris tells him to just leave it.

They got the reminder for Darren to head to the stage so Chris took one last look at his boyfriend before giving him a good luck kiss.

“Break a leg out there, babe.”

“Thank you. I’ll see you after the show.”

Chris smiles and nods before they go their separate ways, Darren heading up to the rafters while Chris made his way to his seat.

Chris watches from a seat reserved for him a few rows back and he couldn’t stop smiling during the entire performance as he was so proud of Darren.

By the end of the show, everyone was on their feet clapping and cheering for Darren and the rest of the cast. They did a great job and Chris was more than proud of his boyfriend for pulling off this role with such ease.

A stage manager brought out a microphone and handed it to Darren.

“Thank you.” He breathes, smiling at her. “Wow. Hi everybody.” He says to the crowd. “Um, wow, tonight was amazing and I want to thank you all for coming out, for supporting me, and for supporting this show.” He takes another deep breath and spots Chris, a smile growing on his face. “And to Chris, my sweet Chris, thank you for coming here tonight and supporting me and just full on loving me in every decision I make. I love you.”

“I love you too.” Chris mouths and blows him a kiss.

Darren catches it and rubs it on his cheek causing the crowd to laugh. He says bye to everyone and walks off stage. The crowd began to disperse out into the lobby of the theater while Chris was escorted backstage to Darren’s dressing room.

Chris meets Darren in his dressing room and immediately smacks their lips together, kissing him. The lust-filled kiss lasted a few long seconds before pulling away from each other, staying just mere centimeters away from him.

“How’s that for a congratulations?” Chris pants.

“It was amazing.” Darren says. He attacks Chris with another strong kiss and keeps going at it not even caring about anything else.

The two get carried away and are then interrupted by one of the managers letting him know about going out the stage door to sign playbills.

“I want you all to myself.” Chris whines.

“You will have me all night.” Darren reminds him. “I’ll see you back at home.” He gives Chris another peck then jumps in the shower while Chris leaves the theater. He takes the car back to the penthouse while Darren meets fans.

Darren didn't get back home until late and Chris was asleep in his bed, looking so peaceful. He put his things away quietly then went into the safe that was hidden in the closet and pulled out the black velvet box taking a deep breath. He opens it making sure the ring was still there and smiles holding it to his heart, excited to pop the question and make Chris his forever. He then puts the box away and takes a quick shower before crawling into bed with Chris.

-Several Days Later-

It’s their fourth anniversary and Darren had a wonderful evening planned for them. They just spent most of the day exploring what they didn’t see when they were filming there for Glee and now they had all the time in the world to do whatever they wanted.

Now, they were getting ready for this surprise Chris has no idea about. Darren made reservations for them at ONE Dine which is the restaurant inside One World Trade Center. Chris was pretty impressed with Darren’s choice and the view from up there was incredible.

They sat in a small booth close to the window and shared a glass of chilled wine, eating their entrees, admiring the view, not only to the side of them but in front of them as well. Their dinner was very elegant and classy and Chris couldn’t go over how much Darren outdid himself.

Afterwards, Darren takes them uptown to the Museum of Modern Art, another beautiful building, not as tall as the Freedom Tower but still just as beautiful and historical. They go up on the rooftop which Chris wasn’t so sure about.

“Babe, I don’t think we’re supposed to be up here. It’s not open to the public.”

“Just trust me, okay?” Darren says and kisses his cheek. “Let’s go.”

The two of them walk outside and Chris was blown away at what he saw. The rooftop had been beautifully decorated with flower petals, fairy lights, and a spectacular view of the city. Chris gasps seeing it all.

“Did you do all of this for me?” He asks.

“Yeah because you deserve the world and beyond.” They walk hand in hand over to the edge where they overlook the city. “Isn’t the view up here gorgeous?”

“It’s spectacular, Dare. I love it.” He says and turns to give his boyfriend a kiss.

“It’s beautiful just that you.”

“Haha, you’re so cheesy.”

“I’m being serious, Chris. You are such a beautiful person and I am so lucky that you’re in my life and that we’ve been making our way in this relationship proving to everyone that we’re meant to be.” Darren says and slowly works his way down onto one knee. He takes Chris’ hand in his and continues to talk. “You are the light in my life, Chris. I love you with every bone in my body and every being in the world. You’ve made me a better person and partner and I want you to know that you are so special to me. I want you to be mine forever. Will you marry me?” He opens the box and reveals the silver ring to Chris.

Chris doesn’t say anything as tears cascade down his cheeks. He nods his head and whimpers a small, “Yes.”

Darren slides the ring onto his finger and gets up, kissing Chris, tears pooling in his eyes as well.

“Oh my god, it’s beautiful babe.” Chris says, admiring the ring on his finger. He wipes his tears and just smiles at the ring, it was beautiful, no, it was incredible. He couldn’t believe he just got engaged to the man that means the world to him.

The couple return back to the penthouse and go right to bed after this amazing night.

The next morning before Chris leaves, he wakes up and stares down at his finger with his ring on it unable to stop smiling.

Darren wakes up and looks over at his fiancé admiring the piece of jewelry.

“I can’t believe we’re engaged and that we’re actually gonna get married. It feels like a dream.”

“I can’t wait to marry you and make you mine.” He says and gives Chris a kiss good morning before they pack up his things and he heads back to California a new man.


	3. My Love For You

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Chris and Darren get married.

Newly engaged couple, Chris and Darren had the most amazing time planning their Italian oasis wedding. Darren has since returned home from starring in Broadway and now they were focused on planning their wedding. While away in New York, he received news that he would be starring in a mini series set to premiere in the winter of 2018 so their wedding is planned for summer 2016 since filming won’t start until spring 2017.

The two had set a location for their wedding which will be in Florence, Italy and will have a rustic theme. Chris took much pleasure finding the venue and planning out all the details for their special day. Their wedding is set for June 2nd, 2016 and with it already being May, they had a month to go before tying the knot.

Neither of them could not wait to be married to each other and be surrounded by their closest friends and families as they celebrated Chris and Darren’s love for each other. Now with only a month to go, they got their honeymoon set, everything they had to do for their wedding was all done, save the dates, official wedding invitations, custom made and tailored black tuxes, guest list, flowers, food, music, everything was done and they were finally able to relax until the night that would change their lives forever.

Chris and Darren were home, enjoying a quiet evening together by the pool. Darren was fooling around with Chris in the pool and held him while they’re in the water.

“I can’t believe we’re getting married next month, Chris.”

Chris smiles, as his fiance had his arms around him moving around in the pool. “I know. I can’t wait to finally be married to the man of my dreams.” He smirks causing Darren to get a bit turned on.

“Ooh, so sexy.” Darren purrs, proceeding to kiss his fiance.

They continue to have fun in the pool then get out once the sun sets and head inside to make dinner.

After dinner, the two settle during a bath together in their master bathroom. The lights were dim, candles were lit, and the city was shining just out the window.

“When do you think we should start to think about having kids?” Chris asks.

“I’m ready whenever you are, baby.” Darren says, resting his chin on Chris’ shoulder as he sat behind his lover in their tub. “I don’t care when we have them, I just want to be there for you as much as I can and support you through the pregnancy.”

Chris smiles and turns to face Darren, “Why that is very sweet of you but I’m being serious. If we’re gonna be having babies, it’s a two person effort.”

“So you’re saying I have to get pregnant too?” Darren laughs.

“No. What I’m saying is usually the husband or partner helps the mother-to-be grow and develop during their pregnancy. Not saying you have to grow a baby inside of you, but understand what I’ll be going through during those nine months.”

“Like I said-”

“Like you said, you’re gonna be there every step of the way. I know, Darren. I just want us to be sure that we’re ready to have babies.”

“Well then, maybe we should start trying during our honeymoon or at least get some practice in?”

“I think that’s a great idea.” Chris says softly and kisses his fiance. “I know it’s definitely going to be something I'll never forget.”

“Mmmf.” Darren hums into another kiss with his lover. “I can’t wait to make love to you.”

“Neither can I.”

After their bath, they both get into bed and that night Chris had a dream about his future with Darren. His dream was amazing, making his heart soar and giving him huge butterflies in the pit of his stomach as he saw what would soon become.

_**-Dream-** _

_**Chris and Darren were still living in the same house, both married, and had two amazing kids, a daughter and son who looked just like them.** _

_**“Mommy! Look at me!” A small voice shouts for Chris.** _

_**He looks up from the book he was reading and smiles at his daughter. The two kiddos were in the pool with Darren, having fun. Chris was sitting in the lounge chair, reading some romance novel, pregnant with their third child.** _

_**Chris was rubbing his small bump and just felt his heart melt as his daughter ran over to him.** _

_**“Come in the pool mommy.” She tugs his hand and kindly declines.** _

_**“I think it’s time to get out for the night. It’s getting chilly out and I don’t want you guys to get sick.”** _

_**“Okay.” She says with a small pout in her face. She looked just like her daddy, there was no denying Darren was her father. She was practically his twin except she had Chris’ eyes, while their little boy took after Chris to a ‘T’. Gentle blue eyes, soft, chestnut brown hair, pale skin. He was a mini version of his mother.** _

_**They all get out of the pool and head inside for the night.** _

_**Chris and Darren give their kids their baths then get them dressed in their jammies and read them both a story before bed. When they finished their story, their son was asleep in his bed while Darren had his daughter on his lap, slowly falling asleep.** _

_**“C’mon princess. Let’s get you into bed.”** _

_**Chris follows behind his husband as they walk into her room. Chris looks around the perfectly decorated bedroom fit for a princess, much like his daughter. She had pink walks, a huge canopy bed, and toys galore. She truly lived like a princess and this was indeed her castle.** _   
_**Darren lays his baby down in her bed and brings the blankets up to cover her small body.** _

_**“Goodnight sweet girl.”** _

_**“Night daddy. Night mommy.” She says, looking at Chris with tired eyes.** _

_**“Goodnight, honey. Sweet dreams.” He says and kisses her forehead.** _

_**“I love you.”** _

_**“We love you too.” Chris says.** _

_**He and Darren went to their room and got into bed as well with a smile on both of their faces.** _

_**-End of dream-** _

Darren woke up before Chris and turned to face his fiance, seeing that beautiful smile painted on his face. He goes in for a kiss, waking his prince from his slumber.

“Mmm.” Chris hums as he awakes. He opens his eyes and is face to face with Darren.

“What are you so smiley about?”

“I just had the best dream ever.”

“Oh yeah? Was I in it and that’s what made it so special?”

“You and three pieces of our heart.” Chris says, making Darren confused. “I have a good feeling about our future together, babe. We’re in for such a treat.”

“Oh really?” Darren asks and cocks an eyebrow.

“Yep. But you’re gonna have to wait and see what happens because I refuse to tell you.”

“You’re so unfair.”

“Trust me. You’re gonna love it more than life itself.”

Darren then smiles and kisses his fiance once more before they get up to start their day together.

**-One Month Later-**

Chris, Darren, their families, and friends are all in Italy ready for their wedding.

It was the morning of and they were both in separate rooms with their parents getting ready to walk down the aisle. Neither of them could believe the day was finally here and that they were finally getting married.

Chris was very nervous whereas Darren remained calm and hardly worried about anything. He knew this day was going to be perfect and that he would have Chris there by his side as the two get married. It was almost time for them to get married and well, it was slowly starting to set in that by tonight they’d be husband and husband. Such a dream.

Allie, their wedding planner, walked into Darren’s room with a headpiece on and a smile on her face. “He’s ready for you.” She says and watches him take a final look in the mirror before going out to see his husband-to-be.

Darren’s parents followed behind him as they walked through the villa, where the wedding was taking place, to find Chris. He turned down a few corridors until he found his lover.

Chris stood with his back to him and was facing his own parents. They both smiled looking over his shoulder at their soon to be son-in-law. Chris knew he was there and waited for his parents and in-laws to step out so he could have this moment with his fiance.

When they were all alone, Darren walked behind Chris and tapped him on the shoulder. Chris took a deep breath and turned around, getting emotional right away.

“You look perfect.” He chokes back his tears and admires Darren’s custom made Tom Ford tuxedo, as Chris had his own.

“Thank you. So do you. You look incredible.” Darren smiles and wipes Chris’ tears with the pads of his thumbs. “Are you ready to get married?”

Chris nods and they share a quick kiss before the ceremony starts.

“Gentleman, please take your places. The doors will be opening in five.”

Both of them take a cleansing breath before joining their parents. They decided to have their parents walk them down the aisle, that way it’d be more special.

When the doors opened and the music started, everyone who was there stood up and turned around to watch them make their way down the aisle.

Darren’s niece and nephew went first, as they were their flower girl and ring bearer for the ceremony. Neither of them had a wedding party and instead let the kids have this small part in the wedding.

Afterwards, it was Darren’s turn. He was escorted by his parents, smiling at all his friends and family as he walked down the aisle. When he made it to the end, he kissed his mother on the cheek and hugged his father then went to wait for his fiance at the altar.

Chris then proceeded down the aisle with his parents and kept his eyes on Darren, telling himself over and over again that he’s gonna be fine and it’ll be over before he knows it. As he reached the end, he kissed his mother and hugged his father, then was taken to the altar by Darren.

The officiant steps up and asks everyone to be seated, then begins the ceremony.

**(A/N: Took this from a wedding script. Not mine but I thought it was so cute and perfect. Credit to Ryan Hupfer)**   
**“We are gathered here today to celebrate the relationship of Chris and Darren and to be witnesses and supporters of the commitment they share with one another. Together we’re a group of the most important people in their lives and they’ve brought us here to publicly recognize that we’ve all played some special part in the love they share today.”**

As they carried on with the ceremony, they got to the statement of intent for the couple.

**(A/N: Not mine. Credit from google, lol, and to whoever wrote these intents. Again, works with the storyline but can’t take credit.)**

“Chris, do you promise to choose Darren every day, to love in word and deed?”

“I do.”

“Do you promise to recognize Darren as an equal, and support him in his goals and wishes for the future?”

“I do.”

“Do you promise to always share your thoughts, and feelings, and concerns, with Darren, and be open and honest at all times?”

“I do.”

“And do you, Darren, promise to choose Chris every day, to love in word and deed?”

“I do.”

“Do you promise to recognize Chris as an equal, and support him in his goals and wishes for the future?”

“I do.”

“Do you promise to always share your thoughts, and feelings, and concerns, with Chris, and be open and honest at all times?”

“I do.”

The officiant continued to talk and it was soon time to exchange their vows. Chris and Darren were smiling at each other, holding each other's hands, waiting for the officiant.

**(A/N: These are not original vows. Taken from Shutterfly. Again these are so cute but I can’t take credit for them. I think they fit very well for the couple. Anyways, carry on:))**

“Chris and Darren have decided to say their own vows so Chris, if you will please begin.”

“Darren, you have brought so much joy and love into my life. You have proven to me that it is okay to be funny while still being classy and elegant. I would be so lost without you because you guide me with your heart and are always there when I need you most. I have to catch my breath to believe this is real, that I am marrying my true love, my heart's desire, and my best friend. I love that you and I will spend the rest of our lives together. Somehow my life has come to this amazing moment and now I will always share it with you. We have always been married, through all time, through all the world, our souls have always been united, and I have the joy of experiencing that love now and forever. When you-” Chris trails off, trying to hold in his tears. Darren was crying and gave his hand a squeeze as he continued. “When you walked into my life, love walked in...It was a magical moment that I will treasure forever with you. I will walk together with you and with love. I love the spark that is inside you, your eternal glowing lovely spirit, and I am so glad to be able to see that everyday, warming my soul, forever. As your husband I promise to love you without reservation, to comfort you when times are difficult, to rally with you, to anticipate your needs, to give my all, to work toward our happiness and revel in our good times. I will respect you, honor you, and cherish you as long as we both shall live. I am yours, and I tenderly deliver you my heart.” Chris had tears streaming down his cheeks as did Darren after saying his vows. He meant every word and wanted everyone to know what this man meant to him.

It was then Darren’s turn, so he took another deep breath and began speaking.

“Chris, the stars have aligned and brought us together for a reason. I love you. You are the kindest, most, sincere, loveliest man I know and I am lucky to hold your hand, be in your arms and in your heart. If you will have me, I will make my arms your shelter, and my heart our home. Sometimes I watch just the smallest things you do and think I am the luckiest man alive. Our love is unique and to be cherished. To you I promise only my constant devotion and love, forever and ever. I vow to love you as you love me, through all hardship, darkness, and pain to reach for our joys, our hopes, and always with honesty and faith. As I promise always to be true I promise myself to you. I promise you my unconditional love, tenderness, and undying devotion, to not ask you to be more than you are, and to love you for being you. You are my light, my inspiration, and I am blessed to be able to call you my ever loving wife. As your husband I promise to love you without reservation, to comfort you when times are difficult, to rally with you, to anticipate your needs, to give my all, to work toward our happiness and revel in our good times. I will respect you, honor you, and cherish you as long as we both shall live. I am yours, and I tenderly deliver you my heart.”

“May I have the rings please?”

Darren’s nephew stepped forward presenting two silver bands on the small plush pillow.

“Thank you.” Chris whispers, taking the ring.

“Thanks, buddy.” Darren winks and smiles at the nephew, grabbing Chris’ ring.

“Please repeat after me.” The officiant begins. “I give you this ring, as a daily reminder of my love for you.”

“I give you this ring, as a daily reminder of my love for you.” Chris slips Darren’s ring onto his finger then Darren speaks.

“I give you this ring, as a daily reminder of my love for you.”

“By the power of your love and commitment, and the power vested in me, I now pronounce you husband and husband! You may kiss each other!”

Both men smile and give each other a kiss that was very different then all the other kisses they’ve ever shared before. This kiss was their first kiss as a married couple and symbolized their unity together in love. It was magical.

They hold hands walking back down the aisle as everyone is clapping and cheering for them. They had huge smiles on their faces, letting it sink in that they did it. They were finally married.

At the reception, they shared their first dance together to Hunger by Ross Copperman and they floated into the clouds as they danced. It felt like there was no one else there, just them, and only them.

**(A/N: I plan to have this as my wedding song so yay!)**

After their first dance together, they just have fun for the rest of the night with their families and friends.

By the end of the night, Chris and Darren take their getaway car as a black Mercury Comet, a car Chris has always loved since he saw Peyton Sawyer riding one around Tree Hill, to their resort and up to their suite which Darren had decorated for their special night.

Rose petals were all over the floor and bed, a candle lit path led to the king sized bed that had a bottle of champagne and chocolates by the pillows.

“Oh my god, it’s beautiful babe.”

Darren doesn’t say anything and just kisses his husband, starting to loosen his tie and closes the door behind them as they make their way to the bed for a romantic night together.

As Chris was fully undressed, lying under his husband, he had a small smile on his face. He lifts his head up and gets close to Darren’s ear. “Make love to me.” He whispers in a seductive manner.

Darren stares at his husband with hungry, lust-filled eyes, and wants to give him a night to remember.

During their honeymoon, they do a lot of sight seeing around Europe and have sex just about every night in a new city or country. They had a great time together and never wanted it to end. They had lots of pictures to look back on but on the plane back home, neither of them could stop smiling at each other. They were more than ready to share this life together.

**-Several Weeks Later-**

After their two week long honeymoon, they had to get back to reality and unfortunately it wasn’t so kind to Chris.

He’s been laid up in bed for what’s going on the fifth day in a row, feeling weak, very fatigued, and just constantly nauseous.

While Chris was in bed, Darren, being the fabulous husband he is, took care of the household chores.

He cleaned their kitchen, picked up around both living rooms, did some light dusting and back upstairs cleaning their bathroom.

Darren picked up the bathroom, put their clothes into the hamper, and moved onto emptying the trash. As he reaches to tie the bag, something catches his eyes. He reaches his hand into the trash and pulls out an open pregnancy test box. His eyes grew wide like saucers and he looked back into the bag and found a positive test.

He gasps and checks the bedroom to make sure Chris wasn’t awake then closes the door. Darren stares at the test and covers his hand over his mouth, shielding the squeal he emitted out of pure excitement. He began jumping up and down knowing his husband may be carrying their child. He sets the test aside and finishes cleaning the bathroom, then waits for Chris to wake up.

Darren finishes his cleaning duties and goes back to his bedroom, seeing that Chris was now awake. He smiles at his husband and joins him on the bed.

“Hey honey. How do you feel?”

“Meh.” Chris blankly replies, closing his eyes again.

Darren just sits there and stares at Chris, ready to burst at the seams about their possible baby.

“So, when I was cleaning out the bathroom I found a little something in the trash.” He says and Chris’ eyes shot open. “A-Are you pregnant, Chris?” He asks.

Chris starts to cry and slowly nods his head.

“I-I took the test yesterday and when it c-came back p-positive, I-I didn’t know when or h-how to tell you. I-I-I hope you’re not mad.”

Darren starts to smile and the first thing he does is kiss Chris.

“I am so happy about this.” He breathes, tears pooling in his eyes. “We’re having a baby together.”

“Yeah, we are.” Chris says, crying with his husband.

Darren moves down so that he is laying next to Chris on their bed and brings his hand to Chris’ flat stomach. He kisses the warm skin and continues to smile.

“Hi baby.” He whispers.

Darren was so overjoyed that they were having a baby, this completely tops everything, even the wedding of their dreams.


	4. In My Dreams

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Chris goes through pregnancy and welcomes their baby with his husband.

After finding out from the test about Chris’ possible pregnancy, he did some research to find a doctor that specializes in male pregnancies. He wanted someone he could trust and someone who wouldn’t judge him because he’s pregnant and well, a man. Chris spent most of the evening on his laptop reading through reviews on different doctors. He eventually settled for one that he felt would be the best fit. Her name was Doctor Christine Valentine and she’s been an OB/GYN for almost ten years, specializing in male pregnancies. Every single review on her all stated that she was an outstanding OB/GYN and had much care for her patients. She welcomed her patients into a loving community and also provided them the best support as they go through pregnancy. Chris wanted someone like her so he called and made an appointment for them to meet.

Now, they were at Doctor Valentine’s office and their appointment was for 8AM. Chris wanted to just get it down and over with, hoping no one would see them and start speculating about them and their possible baby. They sat in the waiting room together, Chris’ leg bouncing while Darren set his hand onto his husband’s thigh to try and calm him down.

“Chris you’re gonna affect your blood pressure if you keep doing this. I know you’re nervous but it’s gonna be fine. I’m here and we’re in this together, remember?”

Chris sighs and nods his head, looking at his husband. “I know, I know. I’m sorry Dare.”

“Don’t be sorry, honey. I understand you’re anxious about this, I am too. But hopefully if there is a little baby in there we’ll get to see them today, isn’t that exciting?”

“Yes.” Chris smiles. “It is.”

A couple more minutes go by until a nurse called Chris’ name. She greeted them both with a simple hello and led them down the hall. She checked his weight and height then brought them to a room.

“I’m just going to check your blood pressure real quick then we’ll get on with the appointment.”

“Okay.” Chris says and gets up onto the bed.

The nurse wraps the cuff around Chris’ arm once he removes his jacket. She lets the cuff swell and measures his blood pressure then removes it and writes it down onto Chris’ file.

“Blood pressure is a little high. Are you nervous?” She asks.

“Yes.” He replies with a shaky voice.

“Don’t worry, it is completely normal to be nervous. I’m sure by the end of the appointment it’ll be down. But for now try to ease your mind, we’re gonna take good care of you here.”

“Thank you, um,”

“Oh, I’m so sorry, my name is Nilsa. How rude of me, I am so sorry.” She says with her hand over her chest.

“It’s okay, Nilsa. I just want to make sure everything is okay.”

“Of course. Well I just want to go over some things with you before Doctor Valentine comes in. I understand that you took an at home pregnancy test and it came back positive?”

“Yeah. I just took one so I’m not sure if it was just a false positive or not. But I have been feeling sick.”

“Sick how? Nausea? Fatigue?”

“Yes, all day everyday.”

“Those symptoms are very common in the early stages of pregnancy. To confirm, I’m going to take a blood test so we can get a better confirmation then we will go from there. Okay?”

“Okay.” He sighs and Darren squeezes his hand.

The two of them watched Nilsa bring what you left out on the counter to the small table next to the bed.

She drew Chris’ blood and bandaged the small hole on his inner arm. She sent his bloodwork to the lab to be tested and left them alone for thirty minutes until she got the results back.

Those thirty minutes took forever, but Nilsa didn’t come back. This time, Doctor Sawyer came into the room.

“Hello gentlemen. I’m Doctor Christine Valentine. You must be Chris and Darren?”

“Yes. I’m Chris and this is my husband, Darren.”

“Nice to meet you both.” She smiles and sits down on the stool, opening his file. “Alright so I have the results from your blood test. You are pregnant.”

Both Chris and Darren smile at each other hearing the news.

“I know it's very exciting.” She says, still smiling. “I’d like to perform an ultrasound if you’re okay with that. Just to see if we can get a glimpse at that little baby in there.”

“That’s fine. Would you like me to lay back?”

“Yes please. Unbutton your jeans and raise your lift to your chest, please.” She informs him. Chris lays back on the bed, Darren moves by his head and runs his fingers through his husband’s hair. Doctor Valentine turns on the machine and grabs the bottle of gel from the cabinet. “This is going to be very cold.” She warns.

When she squeezes the gel onto his flat stomach, he flinches and giggles then takes a deep breath as she starts.

“Let’s see what we have here.” She moves the device around his stomach.

Chris and Darren keep their eyes on the screen, anxiously waiting to see their baby. Doctor Valentine moved the device around some more then stopped when she found something.

“Oh here we are. There’s your baby guys.”

“Our baby.” Chris whispers, tears filling his eyes. “That’s our baby, Darren.”

“I know. They’re so beautiful already.” Darren says, tearing up as well.

“Baby is measuring at about six weeks and is looking very good. Would you two like to hear the heartbeat?” She asks.

“Please.” Chris urges.

She nods and pushes a button, allowing their baby’s heartbeat to echo around the room.

“Nice and strong.” She smiles.

Chris was in heaven hearing this tiny heartbeat that belongs to this baby he and Darren made together. Tears streamed down his cheeks listening to the thumping that was his baby’s heart.

“That’s incredible.” Darren beams, tears cascading down his cheeks as well.

Both men were very overjoyed from this and didn’t know how they’d get down from this high.

Doctor Valentine shuts off the machine after printing sonograms for the married couple. She informed Chris of what to expect during his pregnancy, went through a few other things that he should be doing to take care of himself, gave him some prenatal vitamins, then sent them on their way.

The two of them returned home with their sonograms, pamphlets, and vitamins. Chris held their baby’s sonogram in between his fingers, just crying. Darren came up behind him and wrapped his arms around his husband, resting his chin on Chris’ shoulder.

“You are gonna look so sexy growing our child. All big and full with our sweet baby.” He whispers into his ear. “We’re so ready for this, Chris.”

“I know.” Chris whispers back and turns his neck letting Darren lay a sweet one on him.

**-Three Months Pregnant-**

As Chris goes on with his pregnancy he and Darren get an early start on preparing for their baby. It’s going to be a big adjustment but they know this will be a good thing for them and something they’ve always wanted.

Chris has developed a small bump which Darren loves to look at and touch all the time. They decided to wait until they were out of the first trimester to tell their families and friends which thankfully they did. They didn’t want anything to happen to their baby and have everyone know about it. It sucks going through a loss in private, but sometimes it’s better because it gives people time to grieve before getting back to reality.

Plus, it was a good thing they waited because something happened neither of them were expecting.

One night, Chris went to bed with a bad stomach ache. He drank some tea and laid down next to his husband hoping it wasn’t what he thought was happening in the back of his mind.

Chris soon fell asleep, as did Darren, but woke up around one in the morning to a very sharp pain in his stomach.

Chris sat up in bed, groaning, clutching his stomach. The pain was awful and just made him want to throw up. Deciding that maybe he just needed to relieve himself, he tossed the blankets off of him and saw a dark stain on his sheets. He turns on his bedside lamp and gasps at the bloody mess on the bed and his pants.

“Darren. Darren, wake up! I’m bleeding!”

“Hmm. What?” Darren moans and squints his eyes from the light that was on. “Chris?”

“Darren! I’m bleeding!”

At that, Darren shot up from the bed and was staring at his husband and the blood with eyes as wide as the moon.

“Darren.” Chris cries, his heart was racing and his palms were sweating. He felt like he was dying. “Help me.” He whimpers.

“Okay, baby, it’s okay. Come on let’s get you cleaned up.”

“Just please hurry, Dare.”

“I will sweetheart. Everything’s gonna be okay.” Darren says softly.

He helps his husband into their bathroom and gives him a clean pair of sweats to change into while he strips the bed of their bloody sheets. Chris comes out with gray sweats on and bloodshot red eyes, wanting nothing more than for their baby to be okay.

The two men go out to the car and drive to the hospital. Chris cried the entire time and Darren gave him his hand to squeeze on the way, wanting to help his husband as much as he could.

When they got to the hospital, he walked his husband in and spoke with the person at the desk before being told they’d have to wait for the next available doctor. So they sat in the waiting room, Chris still silently crying into Darren’s neck as he laid his head on his shoulder. Darren had his arm around Chris and was stroking his shoulder, whispering sweet nothing into his husband’s ear.

They were both really worried that he lost the baby, but Darren wanted to be strong if not for his husband then for his baby.

By the time Chris’ name was called it was almost 3:30AM. He was brought to a room and given a gown to change into while the doctor on-call examined him.

The doctor does an ultrasound to check on the baby and Chris squeezed Darren’s hand in a death grip.

“Well boys, your baby is looking good. Let’s see if we can find a heartbeat.” He says.

Chris slowly exhales through the small part in his lips while Darren stares down at his husband and his small baby bump, watching the doctor try to find their child’s heartbeat.

It took some time but he got it and showed the couple.

“Here we go.” He says allowing them to hear their baby’s heart beating, loud as always. “Sounds wonderful and the baby is looking great.”

“T-Then wh-why was I-I bleeding?”

“It’s most likely your body just settling to the baby growing inside. But your baby is looking good and appears to be doing great.”

Chris lets out a sigh of relief and looks up at his husband, who was just as relieved as him.

“They’re okay. Our baby is okay.” Darren says and kisses Chris.

Chris nods, sniffling, and looks back at the screen. His breathing steadied and he felt so much better knowing their child was healthy and still growing inside of him. He never wanted to experience anything like this again and just wanted their baby to be healthy and loved. That’s all he wishes for and hopes he gets it when the time comes.

-Four Months Pregnant-

“Hey babe. Can you go make me a bagel with cream cheese with some Doritos in it?”

Darren huffs, rolling his eyes, not wanting to answer.

“Babe?”

“Yes, Chris.” He replies. “I’ll go get you your Doritos and bagel.”

“Thank you.” Chris smiles from where he was on the bed. “I’ll be waiting.”

“Mhm.” Darren hums, leaving their bedroom.

Chris has been driving his husband crazy with all his late night cravings and his hormones. Darren just wants him to stop being so demanding all the damn time.

He comes back upstairs with Chris’s Dorito bagel and hands the plate to his husband then goes over to the bathroom. When he came out Chris was standing there, leaving the bagel on the bed, wanting something else.

“Can you go get me some In-N-Out? The baby really wants those animal fries and momma wants a double cheeseburger and a large m-”

“I am not going to In-N-Out at twelve thirty at night! You are just going to have to eat your bagel and suck it up! I am tired of you and these stupid cravings, Chris! I am not some mule that’s to be pushed around just because you want this or that!” He barks.

Chris’ eyes are soon filled with tears and Darren realizes what he had just done. Chris turns on his heels as Darren tries to grab him but fails.

“Baby, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean that.” He tries to apologize but Chris wasn’t having any of it.

“You got me pregnant! You should have to deal with the consequences but no! You just want to be an asshole and make me feel like shit! Well guess what!” Chris pushes Darren out of their bedroom and throws a pillow and blanket as well then slams the door shut, locking it.

Chris sobs inside the room and Darren leans on the door, putting his hands on it, wanting to just wrap his husband in his arms.

“Chris, baby, I’m sorry. Please forgive me.”

Silence.

“Chris, I love you so much and you’re right, I am an asshole. Please baby open up. I hate when you’re upset like this.”

The crying moved away, meaning Chris was now across their room on the bed.

“Baby,” Darren completely regrets what he said and kept trying and trying to make Chris forgive him.He kept trying to apologize all night and eventually fell asleep in their guest room.

The next day, Chris woke up in bed, alone. Memories from last night pooled into his head and a frown crept onto his face. He was still mad at his husband but understood that Darren was mad too. He realized how selfish he was being and took advantage of his husband and that’s not okay.

So, Chris went to go find Darren and hopefully apologize. He goes to their guest room and sees the human sized lump under the blankets. Chris tiptoes inside and crawls onto the bed, sliding into Darren’s arms.

Darren moans as he’s woken up by his husband, surprised to see him in there.

“Hey. Are you okay?” He asks.

Chris shakes his head and swallows before speaking. “I wanted to apologize for acting like a brat last night and I’m sorry for kicking you out of the room.”

“I’m sorry too.” Darren says and rubs his hand up and down Chris’ warm back. “I’m sorry for being a jerk and yelling at you. You didn’t deserve that and I was acting like a fool because I was tired and just wanted some sleep.”

They stare at each and both go in for a kiss, making up to each other.

“God, I love you.” Darren breathes as he was just centimeters away from Chris.

Chris’ eyes suddenly widen and his jaw drops open as he emits a quiet gasp.

“What? Did I do something?” Darren asks, worried.

“No.” Chris shakes his head and takes his husband's hand, pressing it to his bump. “They’re kicking, Darren.”

Darren’s lip curled into a smile as he felt their baby kick at his palm. “Oh my god. She’s kicking?”

“She?” Chris questions, eyes on his husband.

“I don’t know, it feels right.” Darren shrugs. “He or she. Whatever we’re having, I can’t believe they’re already kicking.” He beams. “What does it feel like?”

“Um, I don’t even know how to describe it. It just feels amazing. But they’re saying hello to their daddy.” Chris says, already having tears glisten in his eyes.

“Daddy.” Darren whispers to himself and raises Chris' shirt, scooting down a bit. “Hello baby boy or baby girl, it’s your daddy, again.” He laughs at himself, petting Chris’ swollen belly. “I am so excited to meet you and see you for the first time. Mommy and I can’t wait to have you here.” He kisses the stretched skin and lays the side of his head to it, feeling another hard kick to his ear.

“We have another appointment this morning with Doctor Valentine, babe.”

“We do?”

“Yep. We’re gonna see if we’re having a boy or girl. If our baby doesn't have an attitude like me.”

“Right.” Darren says and sits back up. “Well then let’s shower so we’re not late.”

“Okay.” Chris smiles, kissing his husband.

They shower together and grab breakfast on the go while heading to their appointment.

At Doctor Valentine’s office, she checks Chris’ weight, blood pressure, measures his belly, asks him some questions then gets on with the ultrasound.

“You guys have any idea what you’re having or hoping for?”

“Girl.” They say at the same time.

“I’d hate to see what’ll happen if it’s a boy then.”

“We’ll love him just the same.” Chris says. “But I know Darren wants a little princess to spoil and I have a good feeling it’s a girl.” He adds, remembering the dream he had about their family.

Darren's cheeks turn a light shade of pink while Doctor Valentine smiles at him.  
“Well, it looks like you were right. It’s a girl.”

“I was right! We were right, babe! We’re having a baby girl!” Chris proudly beams. “We’re gonna have a daughter.”

“Yay! Finally! A little princess I can spoil!”

“Let’s not get carried away, Dare. She’s not even here yet.”

“So. I am going to spoil our little girl for the rest of her life, Chris. You just watch.”

Chris rolls his eyes and Doctor Valentine laughs at Darren’s enthusiasm towards their daughter.

Anyway, they were having a girl. A perfect baby girl that’s gonna have her mommy’s blue eyes and her daddy’s beautiful black curls. Neither of them could wait for her arrival, even though they still had months until she came.

**-Five Months Pregnant-**

Chris and Darren have decided to take a mini weekend vacation to Malibu and do some shopping. Though Malibu wasn’t far from LA, it was still good to be out of town and spend some time with each other.

They were in a store called ‘Birdie and Babe’ and Chris was going balls to the walls grabbing everything in sight for their little girl.

It was easy to shop with his husband tagging along because whatever he picked out, which was about four or five outfits at a time, he’d give them to Darren to hold.

Chris was looking through a rack of baby sweaters and nearly went berserk finding this adorable knit sweater in three fall colors, perfect for when the holidays come. He grabbed the maroon, mustard, and cream colored, all in the same size and gave them to his husband.

“These are gonna look so cute on her.”

“Uh, babe? Don’t you think you’re going a bit overboard on clothes for her?” Darren asks and receives a glare from Chris. “N-Not that these clothes aren’t gonna look adorable on her. I’m just worried we’re gonna buy all this stuff and her not getting the chance to wear it because babies do grow fast.”

“Darren, that’s why you plan ahead. These sweaters won’t be worn until next year when she’s close to being a year old. I’m not just buying newborn clothes, because I do know too that babies grow fast. But I am getting what I can and what I want in different sizes so her wardrobe will be full of fashionable options. Besides, can’t I spoil our girl too? She’s not only your daughter so you better get used to it.”

Darren smirks at his husband’s choice of words and watches Chris move onto another rack.

By the time Chris was done raiding the shelves and racks inside the store, they went to the checkout counter and paid. Everything rang up at nearly $975.00. Darren’s eyeballs literally fell out of his head and rolled on the floor when he saw the price. Chris gracefully swiped his card, thanked the kind woman, and then they were on their way.

“Where to next, babe?” Darren asks as they approach his car.

“Um. I don’t know.” Chris sighs.

They put their bags in the trunk, they get up into the front seats. Chris rubs his bump while Darren starts the car.

“What’s wrong?” Darren asks. He could tell his husband was bothered by something. He either saw something or heard something he didn’t like and it made him upset.

“Nothing.” Chris sharks his head and keeps his head on his belly. “Just got a strange feeling like something’s gonna happen.”

“Oh? Well don’t think about it babe. I’m here and I’m not gonna let anything to you, you know that right?”

“I know.” Chris exhales and faces his husband. “Can we go get something to eat? Shopping always makes me work up an appetite.”

“Of course, love.” Darren smiles and leans over the center console, giving his husband a quick kiss.

As they left the parking lot, Chris couldn’t shake the feeling that something was wrong. It was weird and it was making him uncomfortable. Like just being in their car made him want to hide, as if they had eyes on them all the time.

They haven’t really announced their pregnancy out into the world yet, so maybe someone saw them and recognized them or something. He couldn’t figure out why he had this feeling of being stared at but it wasn’t going away. All he could do now was hope his baby girl doesn’t get roped into all this drama and chaos once she’s born. He just wants her to have a normal life, well as normal as she can.

They returned home Sunday evening and Chris nearly wanted to throw up when he saw what his PR Manager had sent him.

He read the headlines over and over again until he actually made himself sick.

They’ve been exploited all over social media as Chris was sporting his baby bump, not trying to hide it.

**Glee alum, Chris Colfer, assumingly born a hermaphrodite is pregnant by another Glee alum, Darren Criss. Read more…**

**Chris Colfer is really a freak of nature.**

**Chris Colfer, pregnant with the devil’s spawn.**

**Chris Colfer pr-**

“I told you not to keep reading these, Chris.” Darren had closed Chris’ laptop as his husband was crying from all the articles.

“I already read through every single one I could find.” Chris admits and places his laptop next to him on the bed. “Ev-Everyone thinks I’m s-some freak of n-nature and-and that our b-baby doesn’t deserve t-to l-”

Chris ran to the bathroom and collapsed onto his knees, throwing up into the toilet. His heart was racing and his head felt like it was on fire as his anxiety set in after seeing all those.

“Oh Chris,” Darren feels terrible and gets next to his husband, rubbing his back soothingly. “Shh, just let it out of your system. It’s okay.”

Once Chris was done throwing up nothing but stomach bile. He sat back against the tub with huge tears streaming down his red cheeks. Darren came back with some ice cream and a spoon for his husband.

Chris whimpers and gets to eating it right away. “W-What did I get myself into?” He asks and looks down at his bump, feeling guilty.

“Hey,” Darren places his fingers under Chris’ chine and tilts his head up. “Don’t listen to them or give into it. That’s what they want and they are not going to get it. Our baby isn’t a monster and you are not a freak.” Darren says and Chris sniffles. “This is a beautiful thing to go through, you’re beautiful, and so is our baby girl. Don’t let these ignorant people tell you otherwise, babe. I love you and I love you seeing you grow big with our child. Don’t believe a word anyone says in those articles because you don't deserve to be told you shouldn’t enjoy this pregnancy because you should. This is the miracle of life and our girl is gonna be so lucky to have us as her parents because we are going to love her endlessly and no one can take that away from us.”

Chris knows he’s right and sniffles as he eats his ice cream, “S-She’s kicking a lot.” He says causing Darren to smile.

He presses his hand onto Chris’ bump feeling their girl move around.

“Hey baby girl. Daddy wanted to tell you that if anyone ever gives you a hard time, you have my permission to kick their butt okay?” She keeps moving and Chris laughs.

“She already loves her daddy so much.” Chris says, sticking his spoon into his ice cream. “So do I.” He moves closer to his husband and gives him a chocolate flavored kiss.

**-Six Months Pregnant-**

Chris and Darren are home waiting for the lamaze teacher to come. Ever since the whole ordeal with the public finding out he’s pregnant, he’s decided to have lamaze classes at home and hired a private instructor to help get them ready for labor and delivery.

“Darren, please try to behave and not make a joke out of this.”

“What makes you think I’m going to misbehave during our class? This is important for you.”

“I know but ever since what happened, I want to make a good first impression.”

“I know sweetheart.” Darren moves and wraps his arms above Chris’s bump. “I promise, I’ll be a good boy.” He whispers and nibbles on Chris’ earlobe.

“Mmm.” Chris hums and smiles. “Thank you, baby.”

Just then, the doorbell goes off which means Haley was here.

“That must be her.” Chris says.

He walks to the front door and opens it, revealing a young woman standing there with a bag hanging off her shoulder and a smile on her face.

“Hi, I’m Haley. You must be Chris?” She asks, pointing to him.

“Hi, yes. Come on in. I’m Chris and this is my husband Darren.” He shakes her hand.

“Thank you. Hi, nice to meet you.” She shakes his husband’s hand and stands there with them with their foyer.

“We’ll be using our home gym so it’s just through here, if you’d follow me.” Chris led her down a hall to an attachment they put in last year.

Haley gets her things set up as does Chris. He brought up his yoga mat, a yoga or birthing ball, and had Darren get some pillows for them as Haley said they’d probably need some.

“Okay so today we’re going to start some breathing techniques, then do some positive partner encouragement, then work on some labor positions, and.” She pulls DVDs out from her bag. “I brought several male birthing videos that Chris had me to bring, just so you can see what it’s like and what to expect.”

“Great.” Chris smiles, Darren on the other hand wasn’t so excited about having to watch the birth videos.

“Oh and I also made a schedule for our classes that I have sent to your email. If you ever need to reschedule just let me know, okay?”

“Alrighty.”

“Okay so let’s get started. If you have any questions please feel free to stop me at any time and I will gladly answer as best as I can.” Haley says.

The two spend most of their afternoon with Haley learning about pregnancy, labor, and birth and it was very fascinating to the two, other than the birth videos.

“Alright so now, Darren I want you to face Chris.” Darren moved and was sitting across his husband. “Now I want you to say positive affirmations to Chris. During labor, especially a home birth, he won’t have much pain relief so words from the heart tend to help with the pain.” Haley informs.

“Okay. Chris you are beautiful.” He says and Haley smiles.

“That’s good. Keep going. You’re off to a good start, Darren.”

“You can do this.”

“Listen to your body.”

“Your body was designed to do this.”

You are capable and strong and powerful.”

“You were made to do this.”

“Breathe in calm and breathe out tension.”

“Good. That was very good, keep going.” Haley encourages.

They continued with the affirmations then moved onto the videos.

Darren was not too pleased but Chris forced him to watch since he was going to be there when their daughter was born and since they’re planning to have a home birth, he can’t pass out.

“Darren, just five minutes. He’s almost done.” Chris says trying to get his husband to watch. “Look here comes the baby’s head.”

“Oh god. I think I’m gonna be sick.” Darren makes a choked sound as his cheeks fill with air.

“Darren, please. Just watch it. For me.” Chris pleads and sticks out his bottom lip.

“Okay.” He sighs, and turns his head to watch the video. He didn’t want to but he grew a pair and braved it out for his husband. “Oh god.” He wanted to throw up when he saw the baby come out covered in blood and this kind of white stuff. Chris watched as they placed the baby onto the younger man’s chest and all he could do was cry because he couldn’t wait to have his baby girl on his chest, all cute and new to the world.

“Isn’t that beautiful, babe. Look at the baby with his mommy. That’s gonna be me.”

Darren smiled as his husband was so excited over the birth video. Even though he didn’t like watching the birth of someone else’s child, he knew he was going to be fine when his child was born.

By the time Haley leaves, they thank her for coming and can’t wait for their next class.

Afterwards, they clean up their home gym then decide to cuddle together on the couch.

“Is our girl still active?” Darren asks as both their hands were on Chris’ belly. “Baby girl, you awake in there.” He gets a hard kick in a response and Chris laughs as his husband bonds with their baby girl while she’s still inside his belly.

“I think we should start discussing names.” Chris suggests while his fingers get lost in Darren’s curls.

“Okay. Do you have any you like?”

“I have one that I think would be perfect for her but I guess some options would be good. Do you have any?”

“Well, I’ve always liked Luna, Ella, or Lainey. I don’t know, something different I guess. What’s the one you like?”

Chris smiles and whispers into Darren’s ear the name he wants to give their daughter. As soon as Darren hears it, he smiles and turns to face Chris.

“That name is so perfect for her. I know it’ll suit her well.”

“I hope. I think it’s unique and different and special for our special girl.”

“It sure is, sweetheart. I can’t wait for her to be here already.”

“Me either. I can already tell she’s gonna be so beautiful.”

“Yep. Just like her mommy.” Chris smiles at Darren’s comment and gives him a chaste kiss while they continue to cuddle on the couch.

**-Seven Months Pregnant-**

It’s mid March and Chris is seven months along. He and Darren were meeting with a photographer to have a maternity shoot done. He wasn’t sure about this at first but went along with it anyway.

They were at the building where the shoot would be taking place and Chris was so nervous. They walked hand in hand and saw a woman standing there with cameras, lights, a white backdrop, and a laptop, all set and ready to go.

“Hello. I’m Millie. You guys are right on time.”

“Oh I thought we were late.” Chris says and Darren shrugs.

“Nope you guys are good. Um so we’re going to be taking some shots of you today correct?”

“Yes.”

“Great. Well I know you asked that there be limited people here so I brought two of my best workers and closest friends to do hair and makeup, but you both look pretty good already so maybe just some touch ups.” She explains. “Then we’ll get started. I want to take the nude shots first, if that’s okay?”

Chris looks at his husband who gives a nod of approval.

“Alright.” He sighs. He was anxious about posing nude in front of these people he’s never met but he had his husband with him so he felt a little bit better.

As they went on with the shoot, Chris broke out of his shell and was impressing Millie with how well he was taking direction and how comfortable he was feeling. She kept encouraging him to embrace his beautiful body and that beautiful baby belly he was growing.

He and Darren had a lot of fun together and knew Millie wasn’t going to disappoint them with these photos.

Chris poses nude for some shots, in clothes, some with Darren, and others just of his bump. They had a lot of fun and got to look at the pictures afterwards.

“Oh my god these came out amazing. You did a great job, Millie.”

“Thank you. You looked amazing as well. I’m so happy you broke out of your shell.” Millie says, proud of her work and Chris’ confidence.

“I’ll have these developed and sent to you once you guys go through and pick which ones you want.”

“Okay, great. Thank you.”

“You are very welcome. Feel free to take your time.”

“Thank you, Millie.”

The two of them looked through the photos, still dressed in their outfits. He couldn’t wait until they got developed and sent to them so then he can look at them all the time and think back to his pregnancy.

After their shoot, they went back home and finished up their daughter’s nursery, adding the final touches then showered and went to bed.

A couple days later, Haley came over for another lamaze class. She got her things set up in their home gym then was ready to start.

“So your due date is approaching fast. You both must be excited?”

“Oh yeah. We can’t wait to meet her. And I can’t wait to be skinny again.” Chris says and smiles down at his bump.

“Trust me, when you don’t have that belly anymore you’re gonna miss it. That’s how I was when I had my first. Pregnancy changes you.”

“I don’t know.” Chris shrugs and sits on the birthing ball. “All I know is I’m going to have some curves after this and my husband has already told me that he can’t wait for that.”

Haley laughs and Darren’s face turns beet red.

“Can we get on with the class please?” He asks, trying not to sound embarrassed.

“Of course. We’re going to continue practicing labor positions so that when the time comes you are both ready.” She says, rubbing her palms together. “Let’s get started.”

They mostly talk during the class and Chris realizes that he was indeed close to having his baby and that he didn’t seem ready.

So later that night, Darren got out of the shower and walked into an empty bedroom.

“Babe?” He calls out for Chris and gets no response.

Darren threw on lounge pants then went to go find his husband. As soon as he steps out of their room, he sees the door to their daughter’s nursery was open and the light from the moon lit the way. He walks down to her nursery and finds Chris sitting in the rocking chair, rubbing his belly, talking to their daughter.

“Mommy made sure daddy put in a bookshelf for you because I want you to enjoy reading and learning. Mommy writes books, did you know that?” He keeps rocking, slowly, with his hands on his belly. “Mommy writes books about fairy tales and princesses just like you, sweet girl.”

Darren stands in the doorway watching his husband as he speaks to their unborn child. He crossed his arms over his chest and cracked a smile as Chris kept talking to her.

“You know, mommy’s a little nervous about you coming but I know I’m gonna be okay because I’ll have your daddy there with me, baby girl.” Chris emits a quiet sigh as tears fill his eyes. “Your daddy is so amazing. You and I are so lucky to have him in our lives. Your daddy can’t wait for you to be here with us. I know he’s excited to meet you and love you, so am I, but not as much as your dad.” He sniffles as his fingers graze across his bump.

Chris loves getting the chance to bond with his unborn child and just have this time alone, or so he thought.

Darren walks into the room just as Chris looks up and sees him.

“Hey.” He says softly. “Did you hear any of that?” Chris wipes his tears from his cheeks as Darren nods.

“You are already such a good mommy.” Darren says, hovering over his husband. “Our little girl knows she has the best parents in the world.” He presses a kiss to Chris’ lips. “C’mon, let's get to bed. We have another appointment tomorrow.”

“Okay.” Chris is helped up from the chair and waddles to their bedroom. He gets into bed and wraps his leg around his body pillow that he bought a while ago. This pillow was literally a godsend for Chris. He loves to cuddle with his husband, but his body just isn’t as soft as the pillow. Darren’s just gonna have to get used to it until Chris is done with the pregnancy.

Tomorrow comes and they were meeting with their midwife, Bonnie Tellini. They were recommended too by Doctor Valentine. They expressed their desire to have a homebirth so she sent them to one of her very good friend’s Bonnie Tellini.

At their appointment, they spoke in Bonnie’s office about their home birth plan, also informing her that they have hired a doula named Jules and a birth photographer named Peyton They then realize that they are more ready than they think they are and time kept drawing closer to her arrival.

**-Eight Months Pregnant-**

It was the day of Chris’ baby shower, thrown by his mother and Darren’s mother with some of their closest friends there to celebrate their baby girl.

There was a sign that was handmade by someone Chris’ mother hired that revealed the baby’s name. Elliette Sawyer Criss was written in white calligraphy print with floral pieces here and there.

Chris loved how their backyard was transformed into a baby dreamland. He didn’t want a lot of pink because he didn’t want to have the gender stereotype of his daughter having pink everything. Lots of whites with pops of some color here and there. But everything looked amazed and the two older women did a great job pulling this all together.

They all have a good time, eat, talk about the baby, and show everyone her nursery. It was insane to think that Chris was already so close to welcoming his baby girl. This pregnancy just flew by and she would be here so soon.

By the end of the night, the guests had left and both mothers as well as a few aunts stayed back to clean up, alone with Darren and Chris. Well, Chris was ordered to stay off his feet for the rest of the night so he sat in the canopy chair and watched his husband move all their daughter’s gifts inside the house then help pick up with his mother and mother-in-law.

Once everything had been cleaned up, the two women said goodbye to their sons, letting them know to call if they needed anything then were out of their hair.

Darren locked up downstairs and grabbed a jar from the dining room table, where all the gifts had been, and brought it upstairs to their bedroom.

Chris was already under the covers but was sitting up against the headboard trying to find something to watch. He had his glasses on and was scratching his bump.

“Hey.” He says in the middle of a yawn. “What’s that?”

Darren smiles and climbs onto the bed with his husband, the jar still secure in his hands.

“Well, my mom came up with an idea where people would write down advice and put it in the jar for us to read so by the shower it was full and I thought maybe we can read some of them. See what our friends and family really think of us.”

“You know they support and love us, or else they wouldn’t have come.”

“I know, I know. I’m just teasing. Anyway, would you like the first pick?”

“Sure.”

So they open it and pull out some pieces with advice written from their friends and relatives. It wasn’t until Chris found one that tugged on his heartstrings and made him feel like the luckiest guy in the world.

Chris picked one out and read it out loud, loving what it said. “To my daughter, never forget that I love you. Life is filled with hard times and good times. Learn from everything you can. Be the best at everything I know you can be. Love daddy.” His bottom lip sticks out as he faces his husband, tears rolling down his face. “Babe, that was adorable. Aww, I can’t wait to watch you become a daddy.”

“And I can’t wait to watch you become a mommy to our sweet girl.”

Chris smiles and Darren pulls out another piece of paper. He reads it to himself first then smiles and bats his lashes at his husband.

“No one else will know the strength of my love for you. After all, you’re the only one who knows what my heart sounds like from the inside. Love always, mommy.”

Chris sighs through his nose and brings his hand to his swollen belly, rubbing small circles along the fabric of his shirt. “I can’t wait for her to be here already.” He says and looks down at his bump.

“I know, babe. I can’t wait either. One more month then she’ll be here.”

“Ugh. It’s gonna take forever though.”

“No it won’t. We’ll be spending most of our time double-triple checking that we have everything and are completely ready for her. Plus we have all the birthing stuff to order and get situated. It’ll go by fast.”

“Well I hope you’re right.”

“I’m always right, aren’t I?” Chris smirks and leant over, kissing his husband.

“Yes. You are always right, Dare.”

Darren smiles and sets the jar aside before going to change into some lounge pants and getting into bed again. He was rather excited to get into bed tonight because Chris just wanted his husband to hold him and not that damn body pillow. Darren wasn’t going to waste the opportunity to spoon his husband so once he was dressed, he climbed into bed and laid on his side. He snaked his arms around Chris and left his hands resting on his bump, feeling their girl kick a few times before falling asleep herself.

**-Nine Months Pregnant-**

By this time Chris was thirty nine weeks pregnant and he was ready to meet his baby, however, his baby was obviously very comfortable inside because despite all his efforts with clary sage oil, acupuncture and other methods to get things moving there were absolutely no signs things were getting started.

His due date came and went and then another week went by too. He was getting extremely frustrated with everyone wanting to know what was going on and people starting to voice their concerns about him being pregnant too long.

Finally at a week past his due date he got to a point where he honestly felt like he was going to be pregnant for the rest of his life and he had better get used to it. The following day he started having really strong Braxton Hicks ten minutes apart for a few hours at a time. He didn’t tell anyone and he was starting to feel a little restless and strange.

He couldn’t put his finger on what exactly he was feeling but it was almost like a blanket of calmness had fallen over him and he knew that their baby girl would be coming soon. He told Darren that night about the contractions and the next day he booked in for another acupuncture session and went for a long walk with Darren.

That night he lost a big chunk of plug and knew things were starting. He was woken the next morning at 3AM by what he thought was a strong Braxton Hicks. By 5AM he could no longer sleep through them and got up to start his day. The contractions continued about every ten minutes or so all day and he couldn’t hide them any longer. He went for his usual weekly appointment with his midwife, Bonnie, that afternoon where she suggested that things would either keep “fiddling around” or they would kick off after dark. He had slept that afternoon just in case things were happening and surprisingly was able to sleep through most of the contractions.

By dinner time that night he needed to stop talking during the tightenings. Later, contractions were starting to get a bit more intense and he was having a lot of trouble using his visualizations and was getting a bit restless and losing his concentration on his breathing.

At about 10PM his contractions were coming in regular waves about five minutes apart so he decided to set himself up on the couch leaning over the birthing ball with his heat pack on his lower back while listening to music. This was bliss for a few hours and he was becoming lost in his music.

Darren had been pottering around the house doing things and decided to go to bed about midnight as by this stage they knew things were happening. Chris was needing to be by himself and they thought it would be a good idea if Darren got some sleep as who knew when he would have the opportunity to do so again.

About 1AM, he had grown uncomfortable lying on the birthing ball and could only find comfort standing up. He settled himself in front of the TV leaning on the sideboard below swaying his hips through each contraction.

By 2AM, he had sent Bonnie a text saying that the contractions were coming about every three minutes and lasting just over a minute, that he had had a huge bloody show and was wondering what she thought he should do. He had decided not to call her as he wasn’t sure if things were progressing enough to warrant waking her in the middle of the night.

About ten minutes after he sent the text he went in to get Darren out of bed. He hadn’t managed to get any sleep. Chris told him they needed to call his midwife as he hasn’t heard back from her and he thinks things are getting intense.

Bonnie arrived at about 2:30AM and checked out the baby’s position and heartbeat and held his heat pack in between organizing her equipment and writing notes in Chris’ folder. Even though he was using a contraction timer he had downloaded to his phone which was telling him the average frequency and length of the contractions, he still wasn’t convinced that he was in true labour. The contractions didn’t hurt like he’d expected they were just like waves of intense pressure that ebbed and flowed like the tide of the ocean.

As each one started to build he would start his deep rhythmic breathing. He knew that in his mind he was visualizing something but he honestly had no idea where he was. He ends up losing his focus a few times and starts to moan and feel pain but with gentle tones from Darren and Jules, his doula once she arrived, they would bring him back to his breathing and he was able to get back into his head space.

Between 3 and 3:30AM, Peyton, their birth photographer arrived and set her own equipment up ready to document the birth of Baby Criss.

Bonnie suggested they start to fill up the pool and Darren got busy fully inflating it and setting it up in their living room in the space.

Chris started to wonder whether it would slow down his labor as he knew that this could happen if you got into the water too early and he honestly didn’t think that he was in established labor yet as it didn’t hurt. But after talking it over with his midwife, he got into the pool at about 4AM and it was bliss.

After about an hour in the pool, the waves took on a different edge and all of a sudden he felt like he was involuntarily flung up into an almost squatting position and his body started almost squeezing and pushing downwards.

He had no control over the pushing and he started to worry that he was going to cause a cervical lip or his body was pushing too early as he still felt like things should have been more painful or more intense if it was pushing time.

He started to lose focus and Bonnie asked if he wanted her to do an internal to check. He said yes and after another few waves she checked and he wasn’t fully dilated enough to push but his body was getting ready for the baby to come out which was somewhat good news.

He spent another hour in the pool then got out because he was getting frustrated and leaned on his husband for support as the waves kept coming stronger and a lot closer together.

Chris started to let out a very deep and loud grunting/moaning that he tried a few times to stop but found impossible to keep inside. He just let it happen and forgot about it knowing that if he focused too much on the noise and not what was happening then he wouldn’t get very far with the job at hand.

They eventually made their way into the bedroom where Jules had set up several lit candles and birthing affirmations that were hanging on the wall. She made the space perfect and peaceful for Chris which he loved very much.

He labored for a while on the bed with Darren and they shared some very intimate moments together knowing that oxytocin helped move labor along so they kissed some points or Darren would touch certain parts of Chris’ body knowing it would stimulate his labor.

The room stayed quiet and allowed Chris to be completely focused on his breathing and working his way through his contractions. Hours went by and it was nearly eleven in the morning, Chris was on the verge of breaking because their baby still wasn’t here yet and labor was kicking his ass. He had just gotten out of being in the shower for an hour and was back in their bedroom, in Darren’s arms, moaning and groaning from the pain.

It took a lot for Darren not to cry hearing and seeing his husband in so much pain and so uncomfortable. He stayed strong and did all he could to help his husband during this delicate time.

By noon, Chris was on the bed with Darren perched up behind him feeling the need to push like before. Bonnie did a quick exam and he was in fact ready to start pushing. So with his husband behind him and Jules next to him, Chris pushed.

Peyton was behind Bonnie moving back and forth trying not to disturb the birth while she was snapping pictures of the baby’s delivery. Bonnie, Jules, and Darren were all very encouraging towards Chris and the delivery.

After about ten or so pushing waves he felt a huge pop and a gush of fluid and intelligently stated loudly “Something broke!” He had no ability to string more than two words together at this point as it would have taken too much time to say it properly.

“It’s just your water Chris.” Bonnie informs him as towels are stuffed under Chris to absorb the liquid. “You’re pushing very well, Chris. Let’s keep that energy and get this baby out.” She supplies.

Chris inhaled through his nose and pushed, Darren was counting to ten his ear, urging for him to keep going.

About half an hour of pushing, he had an overwhelming urge to hold his breath a little and help push with each wave.

“Deep breath in and push.” Bonnie had her fingers lightly stretching around Chris’ entrance as the head slowly emerged from the canal.

Chris pushed as hard as he could, using all the strength he had to deliver his child.

“Good job, honey. Good, good job. Excellent.” Jules praised and patted his calf.

Chris squeezed behind his thighs as he pushed and puffed out his cheeks, slowly exhaling his spent breath.

“Nice job. Let’s go again. I want you to do at least three pushes each contraction.” Bonnie says.

Bonnie kept saying things like “yes like that” or “keep doing that” and realized that he needed to focus his concentration on pushing actively rather than letting it happen to him. The last three or four pushes before his baby crowned were the hardest as she would retract with the end of each wave. As she crowned he understood the term ‘ring of fire’ very well and was having trouble not pushing like Bonnie was instructing him to.

“Breathe Chris. Breathe, baby. Remember, breathe in calm and out tension.” Darren says softly.

“It hurts so bad.”

“It’s the ring of fire, baby. I know it hurts but just breathe, honey.”

“You’re doing a wonderful job, Chris. Just keep breathing and ease her out slowly.”

“I-I’m trying.”

“I know sweetie but we don’t want you to tear, okay? Just let your body open up and breathe your baby out.”

There seemed to be a pause for what felt like eternity between her crowning and the next wave.

He didn’t know how many more waves came as her head was nearly out. He could feel her ears, eyes, and nose passing through the tight space and out into the world.

“Keep breathing, Chris. Her head is almost out.”

Chris kept breathing, puffing out his cheeks as the waves of pain were coming more intense, one on top of the other.

“Here comes her head, Chris. Good job, honey.”

“Ohhh.” He whimpers. The odd feeling in between his legs was rather unpleasant and made him tremble with anxiety from how badly it hurt. “Oh god.”

“Her head is out, Chris. I’m going to check for a cord so keep breathing for me.” Bonnie says.

“Ugh, Darren I ca-”

“Yes you can, baby. You’re almost done.”

Chris shakes his head against Darren’s torso and whines from the immense pressure that was being felt in between his legs.

He kept breathing until Bonnie gave him the all clear to push. Chris didn’t hold back as he pushed, Darren, Jules, and Bonnie are encouraging him to birth his babe.

As the final one came his midwife suggested that he needed to get ready to catch his baby. He found it difficult to move so Darren tried to help by pushing Chris up. He was coaching his husband through his final pushes and Chris was so ready for the pain to end.

He was holding his legs back with much force and clenched his teeth screaming as he pushed. When he gave his final push, Darren was telling him to push and Chris did. He turned his head to the side, letting out a very loud grunt as the baby left his body and inhaled a gasp knowing she was out.

Bonnie held the baby in her hands and was smiling up at Chris. “Look Chris. Here’s your baby.”

Chris looked down and tears struck his eyes as he saw his baby girl for the first time ever.

He reaches his hands down and takes her, bringing her up to his chest.  
She emitted loud watery cries and it was music to her parents ears.

“I know sweet girl, I know honey. Shh, shh, it’s okay.” He calmed her as she lay on his chest brand new to the world and this type of environment. It’s strange being taken out of her warm, cozy, water bed and to be brought into the coldness with the warmth of her mother’s arms.

He talked to her as she cried and recognized his voice as her mommy’s. Darren was crying as well as welcoming her into the world and telling her how much they love her.

“Oh Elliette Sawyer Criss, welcome to the world sweetheart.” He smiled at his daughter and patted her bum as her cries quieted down.

Chris is overwhelmed with happiness that she was finally here and it was all over. Darren kisses his husband and wipes their tears as their baby girl opens her eyes and looks up at her mommy and daddy.

Chris is able to nurse his baby girl and bonds with his baby girl which he got emotional over and just couldn’t stop smiling. She finally had her first feed. She had these lovely chubby thighs that you just wanted to squeeze.

Chris just stares at her for what feels like forever and can’t find it in himself to stop.

“You are so beautiful, did you know that?” He says to his little girl. “You’re daddy and I already love you so much. You are so amazing and you know me don’t you?” She bats her long eyelashes up at her mother. “I’m your mommy or momma, whichever you prefer honey.” He smiles, tears still flowing down his cheeks.

Elliette was adapting well being with her mother and in this new world.

Once they had the placenta had, Darren got to cut her cord then Elliette was scooped up by Bonnie.

They watched as Bonnie was very gentle with their baby while she weighed and measured her body, as well as the circumference of her head. She then gave her back to Chris who laid her on his chest again.

Elliette let out tiny whimpers while staring up at Chris and all he could do was smile.

He was so in love with her, it hurt just to look at her. After a little while, Darren gets to hold her on his bare chest then they get her dressed together and Chris is quickly checked by Bonnie before she, Jules, and Peyton leave for the day.

Chris holds their baby and says, “I can’t believe we made something as magical as her. But we did it, babe.” Darren smiles, watching as their girl was so amazed at them. “I knew I was meant for this and I want to thank you for giving me the strength to get me through this.”

“Aww babe, I should be thank you. You gave me an amazing baby girl and you have always been so loving and sweet and you gave Elliette the best mommy in the world.”

The two share a heated kiss together then look back down at their baby who was curled up on Chris’ chest in just a diaper and nothing else.

When they put her to sleep in her bassinet beside their bed, Darren just stands over her and watches her.

“Come to bed, babe. You must be tired.”

“I am but I can’t stop looking at her.”

“She’ll still be there in the morning, Darren.” Chris laughs.

Darren refuses and just watches her, so in love with this being that stole his heart. Chris found it adorable and snapped a pic with his phone sending it to Peyton to put in the album she was making for them.

**-Four Months Later-**

Chris was sitting in his and Darren’s bedroom looking through Elliette’s album for like the hundredth time. He admired every photo in it and was so proud of Peyton for what she was able to capture and how beautiful it was. She was able to capture great images for them such as them working together through labor, some intimate scenes between the couple, pictures from the birth including the baby’s head crowning and Chris reaching down to touch it with his left hand.

As he flipped through the pages, he got to when the birth was actually happening and saw one image that warmed his heart. It was her head crowning and his hand reaching down to touch her. He gently cupped it because he was afraid of hurting her but seeing that and the silver band on his finger, it’s almost surreal that this was their baby, a baby they made from pure love. She was there and ready to join them in the world so this picture is something he’s grateful to have and admire the raw and intimate moments of that day.

Other pictures include him pushing and Darren intensely watching his husband give birth. One where Chris is giving his final push and he was squeezing his legs as she burst out and some of the fluids were stopped in midair as Peyton got the perfect shot of her being born. Have another where the baby’s out and Darren is smiling with tears in his eyes while Chris is smiling with tears cascading down his face, reaching down for his baby girl.

Another one where she’s on his chest and the tears are going down his face as he holds his sweet girl and kisses the top of her head while the husband is just in love with the sight.

Then another one of them kissing each other with their hands on top of the baby. It was a great picture that showed their wedding rings and the blood from their baby. Her mottled dark ringlets were wet from fluid and blood but it was beautiful nonetheless.

He continues to smile looking through the photos that were just of them with her afterwards and some of just her either in black and white or in color. Peyton even added some of Chris’ maternity photos into the album since her work partner was the one who did the pictures for them months ago so it was basically like a book documenting his pregnancy and birth but he did have an album specially for her that went through his whole pregnancy and when she was born, but that’ll be for her, this album was for him and Darren to keep and look at from time to time.

When he reaches the end, he puts it away in his drawer then goes downstairs where Darren was with their baby laying on the couch having her bounce around as she was being stood up by him, having fun.

“Hey baby.” He says and presses a fat kiss onto Elliette’s cheek then kisses his husband. He then joins his family on the couch.

Chris cuddles into his husband’s side and watches his daughter as she was giggling, bouncing on her daddy’s chest.

“Are you having fun, baby girl?” He asks her. “Is daddy bouncing you on his belly? Huh? Is daddy playing with you?” He blows a raspberry on Elliette’s stomach and she erupts in loud giggles causing both men to laugh at their girl.

“You know Darren, I am so blessed to have this perfect little family with the man I love with my whole heart. I knew this life was one I was supposed to be living and I’m so glad I get to share it with you.”

“I am too.” Darren says and gives his husband a kiss.

The rest of the day was spent with them playing with Elliette, just spending time together as a family, like they dreamt of.


	5. Cherished Moments

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Chris and Darren's life a few years later with their kiddos.

**-Five Years Later-**

Chris and Darren are still happily married with two kids, five year old Elliette, three year old Parker, and was five months pregnant with their third. The couple are still so madly in love with each other and love their kids more than anything.

Chris was at home on the couch, watching tv, while Parker was making his way downstairs, one step at a time. He had just woken up from his nap and was searching for his mommy. When he made it down to the main foyer, he heard the tv and a smile grew on his face knowing his mommy was in the living room.

“Mommy.” Chris’ ears perked up at the sound of his son’s voice. He turns his head and sees his little man walking towards him fresh from his nap.

“Hey buddy. C’mere.” Chris opens his arms for his son and Parker wastes no time wanting his mommy. “How was your nap?” He asks his son.

“Good.” Parker’s tiny voice answers.

“Yeah? Daddy’s gonna be home soon with sissy.” He says, stroking Parker’s hair. “My baby boy.” He smiles at Parker as he curls into Chris’ side.

A couple minutes later, Chris could hear the garage door opening which meant Darren and Elliette were home. He stayed put with his son on the couch while Darren and Elliette got themselves situated inside.

“Mommy!” Elliette’s voice rang through the large house. “Mommy!” Her tiny feet took her from one side of the house to the other where she found her mother sitting on the couch with her brother. “Mommy! Guess what!”

“What, honey?” Chris asks and pulls her onto the couch with him and Parker.

“Miss Kelly let me read for the class today! I read a whole book by myself!”

“You did?” He gasps, eyes wide.

“Uh-huh.”

“Oh wow. Good job, baby. So I guess you had a good day at school then?”

“Yeah mommy!” She beams, displaying the same smile that her daddy had.

Darren then came into sight and joined his family on the couch, pulling Parker into his lap.

“Elliette, did you show mommy what else you did today?”

She gasps and whips her book bag off her back. “I almost forget!” She unzipped it and reached inside, pulling out a painting she did. “This is for the baby. I hope he or she is gonna like it.”

Chris takes the crisp paper from her hands and can smell the non-toxic paint fumes from the dried piece of art. He looks it over and smiles, taking in his daughter’s work. She painted their house with them outside and the new baby in Chris’ arms.

“This is beautiful, sweetie. The baby is going to love it.”

“Thank you. I hope so.” She closes up her bookbag and sets it on the ground.

“They will, honey.” Chris tells her and runs his fingers through her dark curly hair.

Chris is happy for his daughter and loves that she’s always so excited about learning new things at school. She’s learning and thriving everyday.

“How is the baby doing, mommy?” Elliette asks, putting her tiny hands onto Chris’ growing bump.

“The baby’s doing good, honey. Next week daddy and I are gonna find out if it’s a boy or girl then we’ll be able to take you and Parker.”

“I want a girl.”

“I wan’ boy, mommy!” Parker shouts from Darren’s lap.

Both men laugh at their kids and shake their heads, “Well Daddy and I will be happy if it’s a boy or girl. As long as the baby is healthy, that’s all that matters, right babe?” Chris asks, looking at his husband.

“Right.” Darren nods.

The four of them sit on the couch for a little while, watching tv and talking. Then Chris got up with his husband so they could make dinner, while the kids stayed in the living room and played or colored, whichever kept them quiet.

After dinner, they were allowed to have something for dessert so they chose ice cream sundaes. Darren helped Elliette while Chris helped Parker make his sundae. They both put lots of hot fudge and an assortment of toppings to satisfy them. By the end of their ice cream extravaganza, both kids had more ice cream on their faces than in their bellies. Luckily, it was time for their bath anyways so they were taken upstairs by their father while Chris cleaned up the mess.

Around 8:15pm, Darren was in bed with both Elliette and Parker lying next to him as he read them a story. Chris was just finishing up in the shower, ready to spend some time with his husband. When he opens the door, he comes out to the kids both asleep on their daddy and smiles at the sight.

“Look at our babies.” He whispers as his husband closes the story book. “Sleeping like angels.”

“Yep.” Darren says and carefully gets off the bed so he can take the kids to their rooms.

Chris kisses his babies goodnight then watches his husband carry them out of the room.

Darren returns with some snacks for Chris knowing he’s been craving lots of sweets. The two munch of the Milano cookies and Oreos while watching tv. Darren kept trying to tickle Chris which would make him giggle and spill the cookies all over the bed but they were having fun nonetheless, leaving them up for a few hours.

When the two start to settle down, Darren decides to talk to the baby like he’s been every night.

“Is our little one awake in there?” Darren asks as he raises Chris’ shirt up.

“Oh yeah. They’re awake.” Chris says, shoving more Milano cookies into his mouth. “They’re ready for their daddy to talk to them. It’s part of their nightly routine now.”

“Oh really?” Darren smiles. He takes his hand and runs it along the small bump growing in between Chris’ hips. “Hey baby.” He whispers then kisses the soft skin. “I heard you were getting ready for me? Well that’s what your mommy said. I suppose he would know because he just has that mommy ability.”

Chris laughs, causing his belly to wiggle and Darre giggles.

“But anyways,” He continues. “You are going to have an amazing mommy and the best big brother and big sister in the world. We’re all going to take care of you and love you and guide you in this crazy world we live in, but you know what? Mommy and daddy will never ever let you go through it alone. I promise, we are always gonna protect you and nourish you with our love. My sweet baby.” He says, still whispering to Chris’ belly. “Goodnight, my love.” He kisses it again then brings Chris’ shirt down, moving back up to his husband.

“You’re such a good daddy to our babies.” Chris says as he hands travelled over Darren’s thigh and to his ass. “Maybe we can have some extra mommy and daddy time tonight. I’m not tired.”

“Ohh.” Darren hums and moves closer to his husband, sucking on his neck, leaving tender love bites. “You’re mine.” He mutters.

Chris was so horny and could feel his husband’s member growing behind his pants, but before anything amazing could happen, they were interrupted by a small knock on the door.

“Wait to kill the vibe.” Darren sighs.

“Don’t leave our babies out there. What if they’re scared, Darren? Don’t you think their mommy and daddy should protect them?”

Darren smirks and rolls his eyes as he gets up to answer the door. When he does, he seesParker was standing there holding his stuffed animal, crying.

“What happened, buddy?” Darren asks, crouching down to his son’s height.

“I-I-I had a bad dweam.”

“Aww, c’mere.” Darren pulls his son into his arms and carries him to their bed.

Chris takes his baby from his husband and rubs small circles on the boy’s back as he sniffles into his mommy’s shirt.

“It was just a dream baby. You know mommy and daddy would never let anything happen to you.” He supplies but Parker was still shaken up about it and clung to his mommy.

Chris wasn’t gonna let his baby go back to his room scared so he lets him stay in bed and holds him until he falls asleep. Shortly after, both adults laid down and drifted off to sleep as well.

**-Next Morning-**

Elliette Sawyer was up before everyone else and went downstairs to the living room. She made sure she was quiet because in the past she woke the whole house up when she was the first one up and got in trouble for it. So, she saved herself the trouble and tiptoed downstairs.

She knew better than to touch anything she wasn’t supposed to, only the tv remote or phone if there was an emergency, given the detailed instructions next to their emergency house phone if god forbid something were to happen.

Anyway, Elliette jumped onto the couch and turned on the tv, putting on cartoons for herself. She was quiet and got cozy under a blanket that was left there from the day before.

At about 8:55, Chris woke up and slid away from his son and husband, who were still asleep. He rubs his eyes and pads across the room with his phone, heading downstairs.

He can hear the tv on and knows a certain someone was up.

He cleared his throat as he got to the bottom of the stairs and went into the living room seeing his daughter sitting on the couch watching tv.

“Morning baby.” He says and walks over to her. He grabs her cheeks and places a small kiss onto her lips. “Did you sleep well?”

“Mhm.” She nods and goes back to watching her cartoons.

Chris went to go make some tea for himself and coffee for his husband then joined his daughter in the living room, going through all the emails he got sent through the night as well as some messages.

Soon, both boys were up and wanting breakfast so Elliette helped Chris make his special confetti pancakes.

After breakfast, there was a loud boom outside and the kiddos ran to the window.

“It’s raining outside, daddy.” Elliette whines to her father.

Darren joins his kiddos at the window and frowns.

“Oh no.” Darren says with his hands on their backs. “I’m sorry guys. I guess we’ll have to go to the park another day.”

Elliette and Parker were upset. They had been looking forward to going to the park all week and now their plans got crushed.  
Darren looked over at his husband with the same sad expression their kids had. Chris sighs and rubs his hand along his bump as he tries to come up with something they can do that’s equally as fun.

A light bulb then went off in his head and he smiled.

“Hey guys. What if we spend the day baking? I know how much you two love helping mommy back around the holidays.”

“Yeah.” Elliette’s sad face was taken over by pure excitement. “Can we make peanut butter kisses too mommy?” She asks, bouncing up and down.

“We can make whatever you guys want.” He says. “What about you Parker? Do you wanna bake with us?”

“Yeah mommy!” He cheers.

“Okay. Let’s go see if we have everything first.” He takes their hands and walks them to the kitchen with Darren following behind them. The kids are excited and are ready to become little bakers for the day.

All day, the four of them had a blast and made a mess but it was fun. They order pizza and just have a fun time. By the end of the day, they had baked tons of cookies such as peanut butter kisses, sugar cookies, and chocolate chunks. Then they also made brownies and cupcakes so they were good on sweets for a while. Their kitchen had surely seen better days but they just left the mess and needed to rest from all the sugar they ate.

Chris and Darren were on the couch relaxing from their hectic day and the kids were calming down from their sugar high. Elliette, on the other hand, had a little surprise for her family.

The five year old nonchalantly got off the couch and walked over to the kitchen, creating confusion from her parents after they told her no more cookies.

They can hear things being moved around in the kitchen and a few things falling, followed by a small “Oopsie” from the five year old as she tried to get what she needed.

“You better not be making a bigger mess in there, Elliette Sawyer.” Chris warns and looks over at his husband who shrugs, unsure of what their daughter was doing.

She comes back with a plate of sugar cookies she hid and holds it out in front of her family.

“I decorated these when you two were getting the frosting out of Parker’s hair before.”

She shows her mommy and daddy that cookies that were hearts with their names written on them with edible markers. They say ‘Mommy’ ‘Daddy’ ‘Parker’ and ‘Baby’, written in the black edible marker they had.

“Oh honey. These are so adorable.” Chris smiles, admiring the work she put into decorating them. “You did a good job.”

“Thank you. I wanted to do something special for you.” She says, rubbing her small palms together.

“Well these are beautiful, honey. Thank you.” Darren says and hugs her. He grabs the cookie that says ‘Daddy’ and takes a bite from it. “Mmm, so yummy.” He mumbles, his mouth full with the sugary goodness.

He pulls her one his lap giving her a cookie filled kiss. She giggles and plops herself down next to him on the couch. Chris devoured his cookies in like two bites and had his hand resting on his bump.

Parker curls up next to his mommy again and Chris kisses the top of his head then wraps his arm around him and that moment was when both Chris and Darren realized they made the right choice and fell in love with an amazing person and created this amazing family.

Chris smiles seeing his husband and their son and daughter. He loved them, and felt so loved himself. This was what he always wanted and he got it. This fantastic life, an amazing husband, and two beautiful kids with another on the way. It was perfect and it was their happily ever after.


End file.
